borough

[bur-oh, buhr-oh] /ˈbɜr oʊ, ˈbʌr oʊ/

noun

(in certain states of the U.S.) an incorporated municipality smaller than a city.

one of the five administrative divisions of New York City.

British.

an urban community incorporated by royal charter, similar to an incorporated city or municipality in the U.S.
a town, area, or constituency represented by a Member of Parliament.
(formerly) a fortified town organized as and having some of the powers of an independent country.

(in Alaska) an administrative division similar to a county in other states.

Origin

before 900; Middle English burw(e), borwg(h), borogh, bor(u)g, bur(u)g, burgh town, Old English burg fortified town; cognate with Old Norse borg, Old Saxon, Dutch burg, German Burg castle, Gothic baurgs city; MIr brí, brig, Welsh, Breton bre hill, Avestan bərəz- height; akin to Armenian bardzr, Hittite parkus high. See barrow².

Can be confused

borough, burro, burrow.

Examples from the web for borough

Unemployment is more than double the borough average.
The volunteers plan to eventually map the entire borough.
Film and video crews tie up traffic in every borough.
They ride the subway back to comfortable, modest, outer-borough apartments.
Each borough would be largely autonomous in determining its character and its leaders.
The ex-butler had obtained a small freehold there likewise, which gave him a vote for the borough.
More serious crimes requiring a more severe sentence will still be tried in the borough's central criminal court.
Make a list of the tourist sites that you want to visit and group them by borough.
borough market is a welldeveloped visitor attraction and has grown in size.
A borough is an administrative division of various countries.

British Dictionary definitions for borough

borough

/ˈbʌrə/

noun

a town, esp (in Britain) one that forms the constituency of an MP or that was originally incorporated by royal charter See also burgh

any of the 32 constituent divisions that together with the City of London make up Greater London

any of the five constituent divisions of New York City

(in the US) a self-governing incorporated municipality

(in medieval England) a fortified town or village or a fort

(in New Zealand) a small municipality with a governing body

Word Origin

Old English burg; related to beorgan to shelter, Old Norse borg wall, Gothic baurgs city, Old High German burg fortified castle

Word Origin and History for borough

Old English burg, burh "a dwelling or dwellings within a fortified enclosure," from Proto-Germanic *burgs "hill fort, fortress" (cf. Old Frisian burg "castle," Old Norse borg "wall, castle," Old High German burg, buruc "fortified place, citadel," German Burg "castle," Gothic baurgs "city"), from PIE *bhrgh "high," with derivatives referring to hills, hill forts, fortified elevations (cf. Old English beorg "hill," Welsh bera "stack, pyramid," Sanskrit bhrant-, Avestan brzant- "high," Greek Pergamos, name of the citadel of Troy).

In German and Old Norse, chiefly as "fortress, castle;" in Gothic, "town, civic community." Meaning shifted in Middle English from "fortress," to "fortified town," to simply "town" (especially one possessing municipal organization or sending representatives to Parliament). In U.S. (originally Pennsylvania, 1718) often an incorporated town; in Alaska, however, it is the equivalent of a county. The Scottish form is burgh. The Old English dative singular byrig survives in many place names as -bury.

Encyclopedia Article for borough

in Great Britain, incorporated town with special privileges or a district entitled to elect a member of Parliament.

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