borough

borough — noun

1. an officially governed part of a big city, or a small town that runs its own loc

1.nounC1
Definition

an officially governed part of a big city, or a small town that runs its own local affairs.

Example

Camden is a busy borough in north London with many music clubs.

borough + in [city]

School lunch menus differ across boroughs in New York City.

plural boroughs in New York City

Common collocations
  • borough council
  • borough boundary
  • borough residents
  • London borough
  • outer borough
Synonyms
  • district

    a general word for an area of a town or country, sometimes official and sometimes not

  • municipality

    more formal; stresses the local government unit itself

  • neighborhood

    smaller and less official, usually where people live

Grammar Patterns

a borough of [city]

in the borough

borough council

Usage Note

Usually refers to an official local-government area, especially in Britain and New York City. Distinguish it from 'neighborhood', which can be any local part of a town and does not need official borders.

Common Mistakes

I live in a borough near the station.
I live in a neighborhood near the station.
'borough' is an official administrative area, not just any small local part of town.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

A borough is an official local area with its own administrative identity, often inside a larger city. District is broader and can name almost any part of a city or region, whether official or not. Municipality is more formal and points more directly to the local government body. County is usually a larger administrative unit than a borough. Neighborhood is the least official of these words and usually means the area where people live near one another. You might say, "Camden is a London borough," but "We walked around the neighborhood after dinner."

district ↗municipalitycounty ↗neighborhood ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • borough council
  • borough boundary
  • borough residents

Phrases

  • London borough
  • New York City borough

Prepositions

  • in the borough
  • across the borough

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

The word comes from Old English forms such as 'burh' and 'burg', which first referred to a fortified place or town. Over time, the meaning shifted toward an officially recognized town or urban district.