borough

noun

bor·​ough ˈbər-(ˌ)ō 

ˈbə-(ˌ)rō

1

a

: a medieval fortified group of houses forming a town with special duties and privileges

b

: a town or urban constituency in Great Britain that sends a member to Parliament

c

: an urban area in Great Britain incorporated for purposes of self-government

2

a

: a municipal corporation proper in some states (such as New Jersey and Minnesota) corresponding to the incorporated town or village of the other states

b

: one of the five constituent political divisions of New York City

3

: a civil division of the state of Alaska corresponding to a county in most other states

Examples of borough in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Schedules are trickling out for screenings at parks across the five boroughs, but Bryant Park announced its full slate for its 32nd year of movies on Monday. —David Matthews, New York Daily News, 19 May 2025

The borough is witnessing substantial demand as renters hunt for comparative value and additional housing alternatives, wrote Gary Malin, chief operating officer of The Corcoran Group. —Jeffrey Steele, Forbes.com, 19 May 2025

After helping the Yankees advance to the 2024 World Series, Soto switched New York City boroughs and signed a historic contract with the Mets. —Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 17 May 2025

The neo-Gothic, very empty Brooklyn Tower is currently the tallest in the borough, but if everything goes Eric Adams’s way — which, for better or worse, quite a few things have been these days — Downtown Brooklyn will be getting Brooklyn’s second-tallest spire, too. —Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 12 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English burgh, from Old English burg fortified town; akin to Old High German burg fortified place, and probably to Old English beorg hill — more at barrow

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing borough

• borough English
• borough hall
• county borough
• inter-borough
• metropolitan borough
• municipal borough
• pocket borough
• rotten borough

Rhymes for borough

• acknow
• aglow
• ago
• airglow
• aloe
• altho
• although
• ammo
• backflow
• backhoe
• banjo
• barbeau

Kids Definition

borough

noun

bor·​ough ˈbər-ō 

1

a

: a town or urban area in Great Britain that sends a member to Parliament

b

: a self-governing urban area in Great Britain

2

: a self-governing town or village in some states

3

: one of the five political divisions of New York City