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

• inter·district adjective
• outdistrict noun
• pre·district 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

Their witnesses testify, and then the district court judge is going to issue a decision.

From Salon

She admitted that Trump’s strategy — including tariffs on countries other than Vietnam — could affect her district, which encompasses Little Saigon.

From Los Angeles Times

Late Wednesday, the district attorney’s office filed a motion asking to delay the hearing so it could obtain and review the latest risk assessment of the brothers conducted by the state parole board.

From Los Angeles Times

The district attorney's office has similarly not said who it plans to call to testify.

From BBC

Recent data from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s office also found that the number of reported street takeovers has dropped in nearly every supervisorial district in the county except for the district represented by Mitchell.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

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