local

American  

[loh-kuhl] / ˈloʊ kəl /

adjective

1. pertaining to or characterized by place or position in space; spatial.

2. pertaining to, characteristic of, or restricted to a particular place or particular places.

   a local custom.

3. pertaining to a city, town, or small district rather than an entire state or country.

   local transportation.

4. stopping at most or all stations.

   a local train.

5. pertaining to or affecting a particular part or particular parts, as of a physical system or organism.

   a local disease.

6. Medicine/Medical. (of anesthesia or an anesthetic) affecting only a particular part or area of the body, without concomitant loss of consciousness, as distinguished from general anesthesia.

---

noun

• locals
  plural

1. a local train, bus, etc.

2. a newspaper item of local interest.

3. a local branch of a union, fraternity, etc.

4. a local anesthetic.

5. Often locals.

   1. a local person or resident.

      primarily of interest to locals.

   2. a local athletic team.

      the locals versus the state champions.

6. stamp.

7. British Informal. a neighborhood pub.

verb (used without object)

1. Informal. to travel by or take a local train or the like.

local British  

/ ˈləʊkəl /

adjective

1. characteristic of or associated with a particular locality or area

2. of, concerned with, or relating to a particular place or point in space

3. med of, affecting, or confined to a limited area or part Compare general systemic

4. (of a train, bus, etc) stopping at all stations or stops

---

noun

1. a train, bus, etc, that stops at all stations or stops

2. an inhabitant of a specified locality

3. informal a pub close to one's home or place of work

4. med short for local anaesthetic

5. an item of local interest in a newspaper

6. a local or regional branch of an association

7. a telephone extension

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• localness
  noun
• interlocal
  adjective
• nonlocal
  adjective
• superlocal
  adjective
• unlocal
  adjective
• interlocally
  adverb
• nonlocally
  adverb
• superlocally
  adverb
• unlocally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• locals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of local

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English word from Late Latin word locālis. See locus, -al ¹

Explanation

The adjective local describes something related a specific place. The potholes on a certain street in Pringle, Pennsylvania, might merit a story in the local newspaper. Locate, location, locale — they all look and sound like local thanks to the Latin root locus, which means "place." Something that's local is limited to a specific place, like a particular neighborhood or city. Local also can describe places that aren't, well, places — they're more like areas. For example, a dentist might administer a local anesthetic to numb your mouth when filling a cavity. That means the anesthetic acts only on a specific area of the body.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

local locals

The spots aired in the commercial breaks for local Fox TV affiliates.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

If you didn’t tape a copy off of your local FM station, it wasn’t hard to find somebody that did, and it became one of the first commercial R.E.M. bootlegs.

From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026

However, student union leader Ryad Rani told local press that the effort was "yet another attempt to muzzle the debate" and to gain time.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

"We know there is much more to do to protect local watercourses," the spokesperson said.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

I noticed again how the local people turned their eyes another way.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

To prepare for filming, Eleazar spent a month in Los Angeles, mimicking Misty’s routine and observing the locals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

CHICAGO—Happy hour at Chicago’s Bar Roma was buzzing this past week as locals poured in for $10 cocktails and $11 bruschetta.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

The picturesque Lac des Brenets between France and Switzerland has dried up after a record-breaking hot summer, leaving locals crying out for help to save the lake.

From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026

Authorities have been trying to release the water for the past three days using excavators but have not been very successful, locals told the BBC.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

It was how Jackson got locals to trust him instead of the banks, even though his rates were straight usury as well.

From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland

Related Words

• provincial
• regional