district

American  

[dis-trikt] / ˈdɪs trɪkt /

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.

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verb (used with object)

1. to divide into districts.

district British  

/ 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

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verb

1. (tr) to divide into districts

Other Word Forms

• interdistrict adjective
• outdistrict noun
• predistrict noun

Etymology

Origin of district

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

Example Sentences

Wang and Pearl are expected to be arraigned this month in Contra Costa County Superior Court, though proceedings had previously been delayed at the request of defense attorneys, according to the district attorney’s office.

From Los Angeles Times

All of Northern Ireland's councils have reported increases in their district rates.

From BBC

She called on authorities "to make at least one inclusive shelter in each district".

From Barron's

And they definitely mentioned the Fayetteville historic district, so Maggie takes her butt outside to the cellar, along with her phone, even though it’s almost dead.

From Literature

“Proud of you? You applied to transfer to a school in her district and you didn’t tell me. That’s called lying, Lexie.”

From Literature

Related Words

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