townspeople

plural noun towns·peo·ple \ ˈtau̇nz-ˌpē-pəl \

|Updated on: 10 Jun 2018

Definition of townspeople

1 : the inhabitants of a town or city : townsmen

2 : town-dwelling or town-bred persons

Recent Examples of townspeople from the Web

In the months following Shepard's death, director-playwright Moises Kaufman and members of New York's Tectonic Theater Project visited Laramie to interview the townspeople.

— albert williams, Chicago Reader, "The Laramie Project charts an important moment in the struggle for LGBTQ rights in America," 24 May 2018
Schindler said the Jewish townspeople were loaded onto wagons and taken to a nearby train station where thousands of people were crowded together and surrounded by men with guns and dogs.

— julie gallant, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Holocaust survivor talks of her year in Auschwitz," 2 May 2018
In Parrish, townspeople are considering rescheduling children’s softball games, or playing at fields in other communities to escape the stink.

— Washington Post, "‘Poop Train’ full of NYC sewage raises stink in Alabama town," 18 Apr. 2018
They may also be given to townspeople to increase your friendship with them.

— nicole clark, The Cut, "The Video Game That Got Me Through My Long-Distance Relationship," 18 Apr. 2018
In Parrish, townspeople are considering rescheduling children's softball games, or playing at fields in other communities to escape the stink.

— jeff martin and jay reeves, chicagotribune.com, "'It smells like death:' Alabama endures New York City 'poop train'," 17 Apr. 2018
Given the intensity of feeling, townspeople were particularly interested in the arrival of the white-robed Rajneesh himself, now sometimes seen riding in his Rolls to and from Antelope.

— wendla mcgovern, The New Republic, "Range War: The Disciples Come to Antelope," 12 Apr. 2018
This week, however, seemed to at least complicate that notion when the Black Hood showed up at a local debate with a gun, shooting at townspeople below—including Hal.

— laura bradley, HWD, "Did Riverdale Just Confirm Another Black Hood Fan Theory?," 2 May 2018
Newspapers reported that he had been held in positive regard by Oxford townspeople and his employer, the widow he was accused of murdering.

— mark curnutte, Cincinnati.com, "Lynched in Oxford: Descendant tries to reconcile official, family histories of 1892 killing," 30 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'townspeople.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of townspeople

1587

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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TOWNSPEOPLE Defined for English Language Learners

townspeople

noun

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: the people who live in a town or city

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