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.
the inhabitants of such a community collectively.
a group of animal dwellings resembling a village.
a gopher village.
a small group of houses in a country area, larger than a hamlet
the inhabitants of such a community collectively
an incorporated municipality smaller than a town in various parts of the US and Canada
a group of habitats of certain animals
a self-contained city area having its own shops, etc
(modifier) of, relating to, or characteristic of a village
a village green
See community.
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin villāticum, neuter of villāticus villatic
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."
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Among the residents evacuating surrounding areas is Olga Congacha, 50, who had to flee her village Robledo de Chavela, west of Madrid, in a haste.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Old Westminster set up outdoor igloos during the pandemic, then replaced them with a modernist village of A-frame “cabanas.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
About 1,100 firefighters were also battling a blaze in southeastern France on Sunday, near the village of Pontevès, where 3,000 people have been evacuated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
Some people in Le Barp, a village around 30 kilometres south of Bordeaux, refused to evacuate, others said they did not know where to go.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
Fire-blackened woods, the gaunt ribs of a church standing over a ruined village.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
In his time as the MP for Leigh, Burnham was a driving force behind the construction of Leigh Sports Village.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
Part two of the novel shifts downtown, into the heart of the ’80s East Village art scene.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
In “Daemons of the Shadow Realm,” based on the manga by acclaimed “Fullmetal Alchemist” creator Hiromu Arakawa, Huru leads a simple life in the premodern Edo-style Higashi Village.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
Village by Lake Como cracks down on half-naked tourists.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
On the bookmobile ride back to the Olympia Village motel, Kyle realized that, at the end of the fourth day and eighth game, there were only two days and four games left.
From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein
The corps was far more numerous than the populations of the villages on its route; its ravages cleaned out food stores that local peoples counted on for survival.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Authorities say winds were pushing the wildfires near Madrid to the south and away from the capital, but have forced the evacuation of more villages in its path.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Since the deadly clash on Friday in Tal, Palestinians say that there have been multiple settler attacks on villages across the West Bank.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
People in towns and villages around Madrid have been relaying their experiences of escaping the fires, some with just the clothes they were wearing.
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
The Tohoku region, dotted with tiny farming and fishing villages, is famous for its remoteness at the best of times.
From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
