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• village
  village

  noun

  a small community or group of houses in a rural area, larger than a hamlet and usually smaller than a town, and sometimes (as in parts of the U.S.) incorporated as a municipality.
• Village
  Village

  noun

  The, a city in central Oklahoma.

village

¹ American  

[vil-ij] / ˈvɪl ɪdʒ /

noun

• villages
  plural

1. a small community or group of houses in a rural area, larger than a hamlet and usually smaller than a town, and sometimes (as in parts of the U.S.) incorporated as a municipality.

2. the inhabitants of such a community collectively.

3. a group of animal dwellings resembling a village.

   a gopher village.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a village.

   village life.

Village ² American  

[vil-ij] / ˈvɪl ɪdʒ /

noun

1. The, a city in central Oklahoma.

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village British  

/ ˈvɪlɪdʒ /

noun

1. a small group of houses in a country area, larger than a hamlet

2. the inhabitants of such a community collectively

3. an incorporated municipality smaller than a town in various parts of the US and Canada

4. a group of habitats of certain animals

5. a self-contained city area having its own shops, etc

6. (modifier) of, relating to, or characteristic of a village

   a village green

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Synonym Usage

See community.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• intervillage
  adjective
• village-like
  adjective
• villageless
  adjective
• villagey
  adjective
• villagy
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• villages
  plural

Etymology

Origin of village

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin villāticum, neuter of villāticus villatic

Explanation

A village is a place where people live that's smaller than a city or town. The village where your grandparents live might have a population of only a few hundred people. In the US, some towns, townships, and cities have smaller villages communities within them. There are also villages that are independent of any larger areas. In either case, a village is typically larger than a hamlet and smaller than a town. The majority of Indians live in villages, while in other countries (like Russia and the UK) population has moved to big cities and suburbs, away from traditional villages. The Latin source of village is villa, or "farm."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

village Village villages

"If it doesn't turn out as expected then I think the sacrifice of this village would be quite unfortunate."

From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026

Meena says she grew up in a small village in the Netherlands by parents who taught at a private school.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

For several weeks each year, ethnic Tibetans in this village pluck matsutake mushrooms, a flavorful fungus that is believed to boast medicinal properties—and can make fortunes in this less-developed corner of China.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

From humble beginnings as a small village boy from Punjab, he made history in 2023 by becoming the first Punjabi-language singer to perform at the US music festival Coachella.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

She was in Rochester when these tricks first begun, but came to Hydesville, the little village in Central New York, where we lived and were born, shortly after.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

While her Tribeca pad was undergoing renovation, she resided in a West Village townhouse, which she reportedly paid $38,000 a month to live in from 2016 until 2017.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026

Ingrid Landreth, 69, moved into Quincy Village last year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

He decided business would be good near the pedestrian heavy streets across from the shops at USC Village.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

They also didn’t attempt to measure the number living unsheltered around what will become the athletes’ Olympic Village at UCLA.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

“A nightclub with a door in the Village, but the club isn’t in the Village.”

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny

Liber said at least 25 villages will be demolished to make way for it.

From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026

Mallorca’s sun-drenched beaches and hilltop villages have been a popular hangout for foreign writers, artists and musicians for more than a century.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

Picturesque villages of green paddy fields and houses sat beside vast chunks of land washed away.

From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026

“We visited local villages, preached the word, sent in clothes for the needy, toys for the children.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

There were maybe 200 in my group, from my village and several surrounding villages, ages 12 to 22.

From "Facing the Lion" by Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton and Herman Viola

Related Words

• center
• suburb