municipal

American  

[myoo-nis-uh-puhl] / myuˈnɪs ə pəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to a town or city or its local government.

   municipal elections.

2. Archaic. pertaining to the internal affairs of a state or nation rather than to international affairs.

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noun

1. a municipal bond.

municipal British  

/ mjuːˈnɪsɪpəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to a town, city, or borough or its local government

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Other Word Forms

• intermunicipal adjective
• municipalism noun
• municipalist noun
• municipally adverb
• nonmunicipal adjective
• nonmunicipally adverb
• premunicipal adjective
• quasi-municipal adjective
• quasi-municipally adverb
• supermunicipal adjective

Etymology

Origin of municipal

First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin mūnicipālis, from mūnicip-, stem of mūniceps “citizen of a free town” (from mūni(a) “duties” + -ceps, combining form of capere “to take”; prince ) + -ālis -al ¹

Example Sentences

Woods was scheduled to attend the opening of “The Patch,” a municipal golf course in Augusta that he helped redesign.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

Treasurys, says Andrew Clinton, CEO of Clinton Investments in Stamford, Conn. “For those in high tax brackets, the taxable equivalent yields of municipal bonds are often higher than those of taxable CDs and Treasurys.”

From MarketWatch • Mar. 31, 2026

Surprisingly, the LFI does not appear to have been badly damaged, and pulled through the first round of the municipal elections with strong results.

From Salon • Mar. 28, 2026

Japan has a poor recycling rate, reusing not even 20 percent of municipal waste, according to the National Institute for Environmental Studies.

From Barron's • Mar. 25, 2026

Any municipal jail, he figured, expects many of their prisoners to leave within a day or two, through bonds or dropped charges or any number of outcomes for the small-time offender.

From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers