district

[dis-trikt]

noun

1. a division of territory, as of a country, state, or county, marked off for administrative, electoral, or other purposes.

2. a region or locality.

   the theater district; the Lake District.

3. British.,  a subdivision of a county or a town.

4. the District, the District of Columbia; Washington, D.C.

verb (used with object)

1. to divide into districts.

district

/ ˈdɪstrɪkt /

noun

1. 1. an area of land marked off for administrative or other purposes

   2. ( as modifier )

      district nurse

2. a locality separated by geographical attributes; region

3. any subdivision of any territory, region, etc

4. (in England from 1974 and in Wales 1974–96) any of the subdivisions of the nonmetropolitan counties that elects a council responsible for local planning, housing, rates, etc See also metropolitan district

5. (in Scotland until 1975) a landward division of a county

6. (in Scotland 1975–96) any of the subdivisions of the regions that elected a council responsible for environmental health services, housing, etc

7. any of the 26 areas into which Northern Ireland has been divided since 1973. Elected district councils are responsible for environmental health services, etc

verb

1. (tr) to divide into districts

Other Word Forms

• interdistrict adjective
• outdistrict noun
• predistrict noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of district¹

First recorded in 1605–15; from French, from Medieval Latin distrīctus “exercise of justice, restraining of offenders,” derivative of Latin distringere “to stretch out; detain, occupy,” equivalent to di- suffix of separation + strig- (base of stringere “to bind, tie”) + -tus suffix of verbal action; distrain, di- ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of district¹

C17: from Medieval Latin districtus area of jurisdiction, from Latin distringere to stretch out; see _distrain

Example Sentences

She grew up up as a "Broadway kid", making her stage debut, at age 10, in New York's famous theatre district as the lead in Annie.

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The Merced Democrat’s vote reflects the political reality of representing one of the nation’s few battleground districts.

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A deputy district attorney had been present at Vidal’s parole hearing, but the testimony didn’t spark a review of the case at the time.

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Billboards calling her a “baby killer” popped up across her district during the 2024 cycle, spawning questions from her grandchildren who saw them, she said.

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In Lawrence’s view, his district and the country’s affordability and environmental issues need to be addressed in a comprehensive New Deal-style package of legislation with the goal of providing economic security generations into the future.

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Related Words

• commune 
• community 
• department 
• locality 
• neighborhood 
• parish 
• precinct 
• region 
• section 
• sector 
• territory