town

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town

(toun)

a. A population center that is larger than a village and smaller than a city.

b. A territorial and political unit governed by a town meeting, especially in New England.

c. Informal A city: New York is a big town.

d. Chiefly British A rural village that has a market or fair periodically.

e. The residents of a town: The whole town was upset at the news.

2. An area that is more densely populated or developed than the surrounding area: going into town to shop.

3. The residents of a community in which a university or college is located, as opposed to the students and faculty: a dispute pitting town against gown.

4. A group of prairie dog burrows.

Idiom:

on the town Informal

In spirited pursuit of the entertainment offered by a town or city.

[Middle English, from Old English tūn, enclosed place, village; see dheuə- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

town

(taʊn)

1. (Human Geography)

a. a densely populated urban area, typically smaller than a city and larger than a village, having some local powers of government and a fixed boundary

b. (as modifier): town life. urban

2. (Human Geography) a city, borough, or other urban area

3. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) (in the US) a territorial unit of local government that is smaller than a county; township

4. (Human Geography) the nearest town or commercial district

5. (Human Geography) London or the chief city of an area

6. (Human Geography) the inhabitants of a town

7. the permanent residents of a university town as opposed to the university staff and students. Compare gown³

8. go to town

a. to make a supreme or unrestricted effort; go all out

b. Austral and NZ informal to lose one's temper

9. on the town seeking out entertainments and amusements

[Old English tūn village; related to Old Saxon, Old Norse tūn, Old High German zūn fence, Old Irish dūn]

ˈtownish adj

ˈtownless adj

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

town

(taʊn)

n.

1. a thickly populated area, usu. smaller than a city and larger than a village, having fixed boundaries and certain local powers of government.

2. a densely populated area of considerable size, as a city or borough.

3. (esp. in New England) a municipal corporation with less elaborate organization and powers than a city.

4. (in most U.S. states except those of New England) a township.

5. the inhabitants of a town; townspeople; citizenry.

6. the particular town or city in mind or referred to: to be out of town.

7. the main business or shopping area in a town or city; downtown.

8. Brit. a village or hamlet in which a periodic market or fair is held.

adj.

9. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a town.

Idioms:

1. go to town, Informal.

a. to accomplish something with great speed and efficiency.

b. to indulge oneself in a fling or binge.

2. on the town, Informal. in quest of entertainment in a city's nightclubs, bars, etc.; out to have a good time.

[before 900; Middle English toun, tun, Old English tūn enclosure, farmstead, village, c. Old Frisian, Old Saxon, Old Norse tūn, Old High German zūn enclosure, fence, Old Irish dún fort]

Town

the inhabitants of a town; a nest of penguins, 1839; a group of burrows of the prairie dog, 1808.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	town - an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city; "they drive through town on their way to work" city limit, city limits - the limits of the area occupied by a city or town municipality - an urban district having corporate status and powers of self-government burg - colloquial American term for a town; "I've lived in this burg all my life" boom town - a town enjoying sudden prosperity cow town, cowtown - a small town in a cattle-raising area of western North America ghost town - a deserted settlement (especially in western United States) hometown - the town (or city) where you grew up or where you have your principal residence; "he never went back to his hometown again" Main Street - any small town (or the people who inhabit it); generally used to represent parochialism and materialism (after a novel by Sinclair Lewis); "Main Street will never vote for a liberal politician" market town - a (usually small) town where a public market is held at stated times
	2.	town - the people living in a municipality smaller than a city; "the whole town cheered the team" townsfolk, townspeople municipality - people living in a town or city having local self-government borough - an English town that forms the constituency of a member of parliament
	3.	town - an administrative division of a county; "the town is responsible for snow removal" township administrative district, administrative division, territorial division - a district defined for administrative purposes
	4.	Town - United States architect who was noted for his design and construction of truss bridges (1784-1844) Ithiel Town architect, designer - someone who creates plans to be used in making something (such as buildings)

town

noun city, settlement, municipality, dorp (S. African) The town is under indefinite curfew.

Related words
adjectives oppidan, urban

Quotations
"God made the country, and man made the town" [William Cowper The Task]

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

town

noun

Informal. A large and important town:

city, metropolis, municipality.

Informal: burg.

Translations

المَدينَهبَلْدَةسُكّان المَدينَهمَدينَه

град

ciutat

město

bybyen

StadtBridgetownGemeinde grad

πόλη πολίχνη κώμη κωμόπολη

urbo

ciudad población pueblo villa localidad

linn

kaupunkikuntapikkukaupunki

ville cité commune localité

עיר

grad

városvárosi lakosság

bærbær, bæjarbúarkaupstaîur, bær

città consiglio comunale fare baldoria in citt...spendere molto per...citt...

町街まち

도시

oppidum

miesto centrasmiesto gyventojainertis iš kailionieko negailėti

pilsētapilsētas iedzīvotāji

stad gemeente nederzetting

miasto

aldeia arraial cidade povoado vila

oraş

город городок

mesto

варошград

stadtätort

mji

เขตเมือง

kasabakasaba halkıkent şehir ilçe

thị trấntỉnh

城镇市民城市

town

[taʊn]

A. N → ciudad f; (smaller) → pueblo m, población f
town and gown (Univ) → ciudadanos mpl y universitarios, ciudad f y universidad
to live in a town → vivir en una ciudad
Jake's back in town! → ¡ha vuelto Jake!
to be out of town [place] → estar fuera de la ciudad; [person] → estar de viaje
he's from out of town (US) → es forastero, no es de aquí
to go into town → ir al centro
to go out on the town → salir de juerga or de parranda
to go to town (on sth) → dedicarse con entusiasmo (a algo), no cortarse nada (con algo); (spending) → no reparar en gastos (con algo)
see also paint B2

B. CPD town centre, town center (US) N → centro m urbano
town clerk N → secretario/a m/f del ayuntamiento
town council N → ayuntamiento m
town councillor N → concejal(a) m/f
town crier N → pregonero m público
town dweller N → habitante mf de la ciudad
town hall N → ayuntamiento m, municipalidad f
town house N → casa f adosada; (= not country) → residencia f urbana
town meeting N (US) → pleno m municipal
town plan N → plan m de desarrollo urbano
town planner N (Brit) → urbanista mf
town planning N (Brit) → urbanismo m

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

town

[ˈtaʊn]

n → ville f
to go to town, to go into town → aller en ville
in town → en ville
I had lunch in town → J'ai déjeuné en ville.
They're new in town
BUT Ce sont de nouveaux arrivants.
to be out of town [person] → être en déplacement
to leave town → quitter la ville

to go to town (fig) (= do enthusiastically) → y aller de bon cœur

a man about town → un homme du monde
a woman about town → une femme du monde

to go out on the town → faire une virée en ville
a night out on the town → une virée en villetown centre n → centre-ville mtown clerk n → secrétaire mf de mairietown council n → conseil m municipaltown councillor n (British) → conseiller/ère m/f municipal(e)town crier n (British) → crieur m publictown hall n → mairie f, hôtel m de villetown house n

(= tall house) → maison f en rangée

(= person's city residence) → maison f de ville

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

town

→ Stadt f; the town of Brighton → (die Stadt) Brighton; to go into or down town → in die Stadt gehen; to live in town → in der Stadt wohnen; guess who’s in town? → raten Sie mal, wer zurzeit hier (in der Stadt) ist?; he’s out of town → er ist nicht in der Stadt, er ist außerhalb; town and gown (Univ) → (die) Bevölkerung und (die) Studenten; to have a night on the town (inf) → die Nacht durchmachen; you didn’t know? but it’s all over town → du hattest keine Ahnung? das ist doch stadtbekannt; it’s all over town now that he has … → es hat sich herumgesprochen, dass er …; to go to town on something (fig inf: = go to great trouble with) → sich (dat) → bei etw einen abbrechen (inf); (to please) → sich bei etw ins Zeug legen; (= exaggerate) → etw übertreiben; you’ve really gone to town on this essay → bei diesem Aufsatz sind Sie wirklich ins Detail gegangen; John’s really gone to town on his new house → John hat bei seinem neuen Haus wirklich keine Kosten gescheut

(Brit: = London) → London nt; to go up to town → nach London gehen or fahren; he is out of town → er ist nicht in London

town

town centre, (US) town center

n → Stadtmitte f, → (Stadt)zentrum nt, → Stadtinnere(s) nt

town clerk

n → Stadtdirektor(in) m(f), → Stadtschreiber(in) m(f) (old, Sw); (of bigger town) → Oberstadtdirektor(in) m(f)

town council

n → Stadtrat m

town councillor, (US) town councilor

n → Stadtrat m, → Stadträtin f

town crier

n (Hist) → Ausrufer(in) m(f)

town dweller

n (Brit) → Städter(in) m(f), → Stadtbewohner(in) m(f)

town

town gas

n → Stadtgas nt

town hall

n → Rathaus nt

town house

n → Stadthaus nt, → Haus nt → in der Stadt; (= type of house) → Reihenhaus nt

town

town life

n → Stadtleben nt, → Leben nt → in der Stadt

town meeting

n (US Pol) → Gemeindeversammlung f

town planner

n → Stadt- or Städteplaner(in) m(f)

town planning

n → Stadtplanung f, → Städteplanung f

townscape

n → Stadtbild nt, → Stadtlandschaft f; (Art) → Stadtansicht f

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

town

[taʊn]

1. n → città f inv
to live in a town → vivere in città
to be out of town → essere fuori città
in (the) town → in città
to go (in) to town → andare in città or in centro
to go out on the town (fam) → uscire a far baldoria
to go to town on sth (fig) (fam) → fare qc in grande

2. adj (centre) → della città; (life) → di città; (house) → in città

town

(taun) noun

1. a group of houses, shops, schools etc, that is bigger than a village but smaller than a city. I'm going into town to buy a dress; He's in town doing some shopping.

2. the people who live in such a group of houses etc. The whole town turned out to greet the heroes.

3. towns in general as opposed to the countryside. Do you live in the country or the town?

town centre

the main shopping and business area of a town. You can get a bus from the town centre.

town hall

the building in which the official business of a town is done.

ˈtownsfolk, ˈtownspeople noun plural

the people living in a town.

go to town

to do something very thoroughly or with great enthusiasm or expense. He really went to town on (preparing) the meal.

town

→ بَلْدَة město by Stadt πόλη población pikkukaupunki ville grad città 町 도시 stad by miasto cidade город stad เขตเมือง şehir thị trấn 城镇

References in classic literature ?

Now you must know that a Town Mouse once upon a time went on a visit to his cousin in the country.

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The third draught that I craved from the fount of knowledge was enlightenment concerning the character known as A Man About Town. He was more vague in my mind than a type should be.

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A knight with a gleaming plume, and most magnificently dressed, held him before him on the horse, and thus they rode through the wood to the old town of Bordingborg, and that was a large and very lively town.

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This was the first town house one passed driving in from the farm, a landmark which told country people their long ride was over.

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Our school was not situated in the heart of the town: on entering A from the north-west there is a row of respectable-looking houses, on each side of the broad, white road, with narrow slips of garden-ground before them, Venetian blinds to the windows, and a flight of steps leading to each trim, brass-handled door.

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UPON THE HALF decayed veranda of a small frame house that stood near the edge of a ravine near the town of Winesburg, Ohio, a fat little old man walked nervously up and down.

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If I had been astonished at first catching a glimpse of so outlandish an individual as Queequeg circulating among the polite society of a civilized town, that astonishment soon departed upon taking my first daylight stroll through the streets of New Bedford.

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So I was up and out of the town while as yet most of the inhabitants were in the throes of getting up.

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As soon as I arrived in a town, and put the horses up, on the way from the stable to the hotel I dropped into the saloons.

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One solitary town, Tampa Town, was able to put in a claim in favor of its situation.

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"This road," added the Wizard, "leads to Rigmarole Town. I'm sure of that because I enchanted the wagon wheels."

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"To my old country--to the town where I was born--up Lantern Yard.

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