local government

American  

noun

• local governments
  plural

1. the administration of the civic affairs of a city, town, or district by its inhabitants rather than by the state or country at large.

2. the governing body of a town or district.

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local government British  

noun

1. government of the affairs of counties, towns, etc, by locally elected political bodies

2. the US equivalent of local authority

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• local governments
  plural

Etymology

Origin of local government

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

local government

The Legislative Analyst’s Office estimated Proposition 39 would “increase state and local government costs each year by tens of millions of dollars to low hundreds of millions of dollars.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

Audrey Baconnais-Rosez, the local government representative in Seine-Maritime, said: "The number of attempts to cross the Channel has increased in number and it is getting further and further from the north of France."

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

“In my opinion as the head of this local government, with state funding paused, the circumstances have changed,” Laredo Mayor Victor Treviño said before the vote.

From Salon ● Sep. 28, 2026

The local government said she had declined its offer of a place in an elderly care home.

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

The meeting between the highest local government official and militant black leaders was itself an important concession, an act of good faith on Grabarek’s part that surprised the black community.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

Related Words

• municipality