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

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 even lost Lay Kay Kaw, a new town built with Japanese funding in 2015 for the KNU, at a time when it was part of a ceasefire agreement with the central government.

From BBC • Oct. 22, 2025

The King's support for traditional building styles, and his idea of "harmony" with nature, have helped to shape his own new town schemes, including Poundbury in Dorset and Nansledan in Cornwall.

From BBC • Sep. 26, 2025

Too old to switch schools, move to a new town, submit herself to yet another foster parent’s whims.

From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline

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