public utility

American  

noun

1. a business enterprise, as a public-service corporation, performing an essential public service and regulated by the federal, state, or local government.

2. Usually public utilities. stocks or bonds of public-utility companies, excluding railroads.

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public utility British  

noun

1. Also called (US): public-service corporation. an enterprise concerned with the provision to the public of essentials, such as electricity or water

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public utility Cultural  

1. A private company supplying water, gas, electricity, telephone service, or the like, which is granted a monopoly by the government and then regulated by the government.

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Other Word Forms

• public-utility
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of public utility

First recorded in 1900–05

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

public utility

The bill would require state public utility commissions to consider adopting a federal standard under which large data centers pay the incremental costs of new grid infrastructure to support their power loads.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

SEOUL—South Korea plans to give its entire population free access to generative AI services, the first major state-led offering treating the technology akin to a public utility.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

The company is working with the Tennessee Valley Authority, a public utility known as the TVA, on that project.

From Barron's ● Mar. 20, 2026

Southern California Edison, based in Rosemead, is an investor-owned public utility that provides electricity to about 15 million people across a 50,000-square-mile area in Southern California.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2025

Dear Sir, I have the honor to beg the attention of Congress upon a subject, which, though it appears personal, may bring about events of public utility.

From The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Volume X (of 12) by Various

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