regional
Americanadjective
-
of or relating to a region of considerable extent; not merely local.
a regional meeting of the Boy Scouts.
-
of or relating to a particular region, district, area, or part, as of a country; sectional; local.
regional differences in pronunciation.
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Medicine/Medical, Anatomy. pertaining to, affecting, or localized in a particular area or part of the body.
regional anesthesia.
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having, exhibiting, or characterized by regionalism.
He writes regional novels.
noun
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Often regionals. a regional competition or tournament.
The basketball team won the regionals.
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a regional company, branch, stock exchange, etc..
Regionals are getting stiff competition from the national firms.
adjective
Other Word Forms
- interregional adjective
- interregionally adverb
- regionally adverb
Etymology
Origin of regional
From the Latin word regiōnālis, dating back to 1645–55. See region, -al 1
Explanation
Regional is bigger than local and smaller than national. The local weather forecast covers your city and perhaps a few suburbs; the regional forecast gives you more: maybe a slew of counties, maybe the whole state, maybe even several states. People who write dictionaries like to think of regional as being a precise term, having to do with well-defined geographic and cultural areas within larger nations: like regional cuisines, regional customs and even, in places like the Great Lakes, regional weather patterns. But lots of times regional is fuzzier than that. A regional high school has students from more than one town, but just how many towns depends on other factors — the local political structure, the number of kids in the area, and the like.
Vocabulary lists containing regional
Unit 3: Compelling Evidence
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The Syrian Refugee Crisis Continues
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Geography and World Regions
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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.
Officials described the discussions as tense and complex, with negotiators struggling to bridge gaps over security guarantees, control of maritime access and broader regional concerns tied to Iran’s role.
From Salon • Apr. 12, 2026
Earlier wars with Hezbollah and Iran appeared to shift the regional balance of power in Israel’s favor.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026
A good outcome for this weekend’s meeting would involve negotiators securing a “verifiable halt to regional strikes,” along with the removal of mines from the strait, said Sparta’s Crosby.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026
She also said Xi had responded "positively" to her proposal that the sides work toward Taiwan participating in international organisations such as Interpol and regional trade agreements.
From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026
Elections to regional legislatures would take place at the same time as national elections, and the regional bodies could draw up their own constitutions consistent with the national constitution.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
