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From Middle English, from Old English tūn ‎(enclosure, garden), from Proto-Germanic *tūną ‎(fence) (compare West Frisian tún, Dutch tuin ‎(garden), German Zaun, Danish/Swedish tun), from Gaulish dunon ‎(hill, hillfort) (compare Welsh din ‎(hill), Irish dún ‎(fortress)), from Proto-Celtic *dūnom, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewh₂- ‎(to finish, come full circle), (compare Hittite [script needed] ‎(tuhhušta, it is finished), Latin fūnus ‎(burial), Ancient Greek θνητός ‎(thnētós, mortal), θάνατος ‎(thánatos, death), θνῄσκω ‎(thnēískō, die), Sanskrit अध्वनीत् ‎(ádhvanīt, he vanished)).



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town ‎(plural towns)

    This town is really dangerous because these youngsters have Beretta handguns.
    • 2013 May 10, Audrey Garric, The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 22, Urban canopies let nature bloom page 30]: 
  2. Any more urbanized center than the place of reference.
    I'll be in Yonkers, then I'm driving into town to see the Knicks at the Garden tonight.
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 4, The Celebrity:
  3. (Britain, historical) A rural settlement in which a market was held at least once a week.
  5. (colloquial) Used to refer to a town or similar entity under discussion.
    Call me when you get to town.
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 2, The Celebrity:
      I had occasion [] to make a somewhat long business trip to Chicago, and on my return [] I found Farrar awaiting me in the railway station. He smiled his wonted fraction by way of greeting [] , and finally leading me to his buggy, turned and drove out of town.
  6. (law) A municipal organization, such as a corporation, defined by the laws of the entity of which it is a part.
  7. (obsolete) An enclosure which surrounded the mere homestead or dwelling of the lord of the manor.
  8. (obsolete) The whole of the land which constituted the domain.
  9. (obsolete) A collection of houses enclosed by fences or walls.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Palsgrave to this entry?)
  10. (Britain, Scotland, dialect, obsolete) A farm or farmstead; also, a court or farmyard.

Usage notes[edit]

An urban city is typically larger than a rural town, which in turn is typically larger than a village. In rural areas, a town is considered urban. In urban areas, a town is considered suburban; a village in the suburbs. The distinctions are fluid and dependent on subjective perception.

Derived terms[edit]


See also[edit]