new town

American

noun

(sometimes initial capital letters) a comprehensively planned, self-sufficient urban community that provides housing, educational, recreational, and commercial facilities and often serves to absorb residents from a nearby overcrowded metropolis.

new town British

noun

(in Britain) a town that has been planned as a complete unit and built with government sponsorship, esp to accommodate overspill population

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of new town

First recorded in 1915–20

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.

It’s a new career in a new town.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 24, 2025

Last month Thamesmead was one of the areas shortlisted for the construction of a new town under the housing secretary's plan to "get Britain building again".

From BBC • Nov. 20, 2025

A largely residential parcel of the base, Parcel A, was turned over to San Francisco and has been redeveloped with new town houses and condos.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 7, 2025

It has taken Lay Kay Kaw, a new town established for the KNU with Japanese funding in 2015, a time when there had been hopes for lasting peace in Karen State following a national ceasefire.

From BBC • Oct. 20, 2025

“And I wish I might come to your new town, to see this ship you speak of, to see these men, to hear all that has happened.”

From "The Martian Chronicles" by Ray Bradbury

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023