province

American  

[prov-ins] / ˈprɒv ɪns /

noun

1. an administrative division or unit of a country.

2. the provinces,

   1. the parts of a country outside of the capital or the largest cities.

   2. (in England) all parts of the country outside of London.

3. a country, territory, district, or region.

4. Geography. physiographic province.

5. a department or branch of learning or activity.

   the province of mathematics.

   Synonyms:

   area

6. sphere or field of activity or authority, as of a person; office, function, or business.

   Such decisions do not lie within his province.

7. a major subdivision of British India.

8. an ecclesiastical territorial division, as that within which an archbishop or a metropolitan exercises jurisdiction.

9. History/Historical.

   1. any of the North American colonies now forming major administrative divisions of Canada.

   2. any of certain colonies of Great Britain which are now part of the U.S.

10. Roman History. a country or territory outside of Italy, brought under the ancient Roman dominion and administered by a governor sent from Rome.

11. Mining. an individual mineral-producing area.

---

province British  

/ ˈprɒvɪns /

noun

1. a territory governed as a unit of a country or empire

2. a district, territory, or region

3. (plural) those parts of a country lying outside the capital and other large cities and regarded as outside the mainstream of sophisticated culture

4. ecology a subdivision of a region, characterized by a particular fauna and flora

5. an area or branch of learning, activity, etc

6. the field or extent of a person's activities or office

7. RC Church Church of England an ecclesiastical territory, usually consisting of several dioceses, and having an archbishop or metropolitan at its head

8. a major administrative and territorial subdivision of a religious order

9. history a region of the Roman Empire outside Italy ruled by a governor from Rome

---

Other Word Forms

• subprovince
  noun

Etymology

Origin of province

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin prōvincia “province, official charge”

Explanation

A province is a region within a country. If you travel to Canada, you'll have to decide whether you want to go to the province of Quebec, or Saskatchewan, or one of the other 8 provinces in that enormous country. Many countries are divided into provinces. In the U.S. we don't have official provinces; we have states and counties. But we can use province in its other meaning, which is "the sphere of one's activities." If you manage a coffee shop and sit there reading and drinking coffee even when you're not working, then that shop is your province.

Example Sentences

He had been due to travel Friday to Ituri, a remote northeastern province that is the epicentre of the country's 17th Ebola outbreak, but the trip has been pushed back by a day.

From Barron's • May 29, 2026

The oil typically goes to private refineries, called teapot refineries, in the eastern Chinese province of Shandong and northeastern province of Liaoning.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026

His second escape attempt took place in 2019 when he swam from Shishi city in Fujian province towards Kinmen, a small Taiwanese island.

From BBC • May 27, 2026

Africa CDC declared an Ebola outbreak in DR Congo's Ituri province on 15 May.

From BBC • May 25, 2026

There was one place in the entire province where you could fade away without anyone asking questions.

From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat

Related Words

• colony
• county
• department
• district
• part
• region
• territory
• zone