rural
Americanadjective
-
of, relating to, or characteristic of the country, country life, or country people; rustic.
agricultural fairs and festivals throughout the rural towns of Georgia.
- Synonyms:
- rough, unsophisticated
- Antonyms:
- urban
-
living in the country.
the rural population.
-
of or relating to agriculture.
rural economy.
noun
adjective
-
of, relating to, or characteristic of the country or country life
-
living in or accustomed to the country
-
of, relating to, or associated with farming
Related Words
Rural and rustic are terms that refer to the country. Rural is the official term: rural education. It may be used subjectively, and usually in a favorable sense: the charm of rural life. Rustic, however, may have either favorable or unfavorable connotations. In a derogatory sense, it means provincial, boorish, or crude; in a favorable sense, it may suggest ruggedness or a homelike rural charm: rustic simplicity.
Other Word Forms
- nonrural adjective
- nonrurally adverb
- quasi-rural adjective
- quasi-rurally adverb
- ruralism noun
- ruralist noun
- ruralite noun
- rurality noun
- rurally adverb
- ruralness noun
- semirural adjective
- semiruralism noun
- semirurally adverb
- unrural adjective
- unrurally adverb
Etymology
Origin of rural
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin rūrālis, equivalent to rūr- (stem of rūs ) “the country, rural land” (akin to room ) + -ālis -al 1
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.
The government hopes the meat can become a source of income for rural communities.
From Barron's
That means restoring real competition, enforcing antitrust laws and investing in rural America.
From MarketWatch
“But we also want to draw from the suburbs and the rural areas and do the stuff that gets actual country folk into the city.”
"It's only right that larger estates contribute more, while we back the farms and trading businesses that are the backbone of Britain's rural communities."
From BBC
India is home to one of the world's most ambitious social programmes - a jobs guarantee that gives every rural household the legal right to paid work.
From BBC
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.
