locality
Americannoun
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localities
plural
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a place, spot, or district, with or without reference to things or persons in it or to occurrences there.
They moved to another locality.
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the state or fact of being local or having a location.
the locality that every material object must have.
noun
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a neighbourhood or area
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the site or scene of an event
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the fact or condition of having a location or position in space
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of locality
From the Late Latin word locālitās, dating back to 1620–30. See local, -ity
Explanation
Use the noun locality when you need an official-sounding way to say "area" or "region." For example, you might say, "I am so pleased to finally have a doughnut shop in my locality." You're most likely to come across the word locality in a news story or business report. It's a formal way to talk about a neighborhood or a section of town. The mayor might make a speech about crime in a particular locality, or the prevalence of potholes in another locality. The word has been in use since the 1700's, from the Latin word localis, "relating to or belonging to a place."
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.
See Examples For:
“That has to be local to where the service is being provided, because people want language skills, people want locality, people want you in their office,” says Krishna.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Thinking about that really, really influenced my approach to these pieces in terms of trying to collapse in each piece the timescales of historical influences and contemporary identity, but also the locality.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
The site is also close to Sidi Abderrahmane, a landmark locality for Middle Pleistocene archaeology in Northwest Africa.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 7, 2026
There’s a value in locality, too; showing now, for example, not just what country the beans are from, but also what farm they’re grown on and what grade they are.
From Slate ● Dec. 22, 2025
The Professor had evidently noted the road we were to go, for he went on unhesitatingly; but, as for me, I was in quite a mixup as to locality.
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
The backlash is a crisis for AI companies, which are facing bans or pauses on new projects in dozens of states and localities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
In some localities there have been questions over hygiene practices.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
Authorities described the conditions Sunday as still "challenging", but two of the fire fronts -- heading towards the localities of Jalhay and Monschau -- were now "under control", according to Interior Minister Bernard Quintin.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
The overall thrust of the package, the Evercore analysts said, is to reduce regulatory barriers that constrain housing construction by streamlining environmental reviews and encouraging localities to adopt zoning and building-code best practices.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 22, 2026
In the fall of 1958, Virginia’s governor Lindsay Almond chained the doors of the schools in localities that attempted to comply with the Supreme Court’s Brown decision.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
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.
