environs
Americanplural noun
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the surrounding parts or districts, as of a city; outskirts; suburbs.
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surrounding objects; surroundings; environment.
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an area or space close by; vicinity.
plural noun
Etymology
Origin of environs
1655–65; < French (plural); replacing Middle English environ < Old French, noun use of environ around; see environ
Explanation
The environs are the areas surrounding a specific place. If you want to go to Boston and its environs on vacation, you might spend time in downtown Boston, but you may also visit Cambridge, Braintree, and Lexington. In general, the environs are the areas surrounding a particular place or location. Environs is a plural noun taking a plural verb, and it comes from an Old French word, environer, meaning to enclose, surround, or encircle. When you book your hotel reservations, you should make sure the environs around the hotel are safe. No matter how clean the hotel is or how good the breakfast, you wouldn't want to stay in an area where you would be leery of going out at night.
Vocabulary lists containing environs
The Federalist Papers, No. 70 by Alexander Hamilton
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Elijah of Buxton
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Emma
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Backbiting seemed like a favored parlor game in the Concord environs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
So while “Goin’ Local” is technically Kaye’s first solo record, back in 1984, there was another project, the Lenny Kaye Connection, a quartet which gigged around New York City and environs.
From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2026
But when the scientists behind the new study used fossil spore and pollen data from early primate fossil environs to predict the climate, they discovered that the locations were not tropical at the time.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 20, 2026
He is not the only survivor suffering trauma related to the very ocean that has long defined life in Manta and environs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026
After that first speech she was a much sought- after speaker in Boston and its environs.
From "Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad" by Ann Petry
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.
