as in parochial
not broad or open in views or opinions
some people regard a fear of new things as an unmistakable sign of a provincial attitude
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in peasant
an awkward or simple person especially from a small town or the country
the confidence man figured that fleecing these provincials would be easy
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of provincial
Gene Maddaus, Variety, 29 Sep. 2025
How has Fawlty Towers, one of the most offbeat, provincial, inappropriate, and heavily excoriated shows of all time, remained popular for 50 years?
—Jonathan Margolis, Air Mail, 20 Sep. 2025
Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2025
While early imperial aristocrats saw provincials as subject nations with their own cultures, their working-class replacements considered Romans a single people and expected all to share the same values.
—Jeffrey E. Schulman / Made By History, TIME, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for provincial
Adjective
So, if a production received $50 million from provincial and federal subsidies in Canada, that production would be hit with a $60 million tariff.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 29 Sep. 2025
How has Fawlty Towers, one of the most offbeat, provincial, inappropriate, and heavily excoriated shows of all time, remained popular for 50 years?
—Jonathan Margolis, Air Mail, 20 Sep. 2025
Noun
Not long after his ordination, he was named the Jesuit provincial for Argentina, which put him in charge of the order’s activities throughout the country.
—Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2025
While early imperial aristocrats saw provincials as subject nations with their own cultures, their working-class replacements considered Romans a single people and expected all to share the same values.
—Jeffrey E. Schulman / Made By History, TIME, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for provincial
Recent Examples of Synonyms for provincial
Adjective
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Aquila served as a parochial vicar in two parishes from 1976 to 1982 and then as pastor at Denver’s Guardian Angels Parish from 1982 to 1987.—
Elizabeth Hernandez,
Denver Post,
19 Sep. 2025
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Or if that is not parochial enough, there are some decent Carabao Cup ties on Tuesday, with Manchester United’s conquerors Grimsby Town going to Sheffield Wednesday and Crystal Palace hosting Millwall, a replay of last season’s bruising FA Cup clash.—
Matt Slater,
New York Times,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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More than two million peasant families were given land.—
Nik Kowsar,
Time,
2 Oct. 2025
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Bettany played English poet and writer Geoffrey Chaucer in the medieval action-comedy, which starred Ledger as William Thatcher, a peasant squire, fueled by his desire for food and glory, who forges a new identity for himself as a knight when his master dies.—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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By a rough count, Flagg played in approximately six different lineups, including some small-ball looks with Dwight Powell at center.—
Lawrence Dow,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
7 Oct. 2025
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While there is acknowledgement that smaller teams, such as Norway’s Valarenga, could be on the receiving end of heavy defeats with the shift in format, the benefits of seeing top seeds clash early in the competition mean more overall interest.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Without so many of the fears, complexes, and prejudices hick shaped us in the ‘90s and the ‘00s.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
20 June 2025
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Sorrentino may also be exorcising some conflicting feelings about his birthplace, which is portrayed as a vulgar, crude place populated by crooks and hicks and photographed like its paradise.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
7 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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But for his wife, the damage is deeper than a petty argument over a pet.—
Tereza Shkurtaj,
PEOPLE,
5 Oct. 2025
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Throughout the summer, Joanne leads her lovable, chaotic crew through a season of strikeouts, petty rivalries, conservative-politician sponsors, and sexy carwash fundraisers gone wrong.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Bridging the rustic and the refined is the ever-changing arroz del día.—
Helen Rosner,
New Yorker,
5 Oct. 2025
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Vanessa Alexander and her husband, former ICM talent manager turned developer Steve Alexander, have listed their rustic-minimalist 7,000-square-foot home located in Malibu Canyon less than two miles from Point Dume for $125,000 a month.—
Alexandria Abramian,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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But those plans can be quite narrow and ineffective for addressing flood damage.—
Tamia Fowlkes,
jsonline.com,
6 Oct. 2025
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Wide, shallow pans allow alcohol to evaporate more quickly than deep, narrow ones.—
Katie Rosenhouse,
Southern Living,
5 Oct. 2025
Noun
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It was adapted into a huge hit movie starring Claudette Colbert and Fred MacMurray, but the breakout characters were local yokels Ma and Pa Kettle, who went on to star in eight spinoff movies.—
Brian Boone,
Vulture,
18 June 2025
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To the yokel who makes his donations in cash and is proud of himself for knowing what LEO stands for.—
Ticked Off,
The Orlando Sentinel,
15 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Provincial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/provincial. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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