Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Nearby Words

township

 - 3 dictionary results

town⋅ship

  [toun-ship]
Use township in a Sentence
–noun
1. a unit of local government, usually a subdivision of a county, found in most midwestern and northeastern states of the U.S. and in most Canadian provinces.
2. (in U.S. surveys of public land) a region or district approximately 6 miles square (93.2 sq. km), containing 36 sections.
3. English History.
a. one of the local divisions or districts of a large parish, each containing a village or small town, usually with a church of its own.
b. the manor, parish, etc., itself.
c. its inhabitants.
4. (in Australia)
a. a small town or settlement serving as the business center of a rural area.
b. the business center of a town or suburb.
5. (in South Africa) a segregated residential settlement for blacks, located outside a city or town.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME tounship community, OE tūnscipe village community. See town, -ship
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To township
town·ship   (toun'shĭp')   
n.   Abbr. Twp. or Tp. or T

  1. A subdivision of a county in most northeast and Midwest U.S. states, having the status of a unit of local government with varying governmental powers.

  2. A public land surveying unit of 36 sections or 36 square miles.

  3. An ancient administrative division of a large parish in England.

  4. A racially segregated area in South Africa established by the government as a residence for people of color.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

township 
O.E. tunscipe "inhabitants or population of a town." Applied in M.E. to "manor, parish, or other division of a hundred." Specific sense of "local division or district in a parish, each with a village or small town and its own church" is from 1540; as a local municipal division of a county in U.S. and Canada, first recorded 1685.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see township on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way