municipality

noun

mu·​nic·​i·​pal·​i·​ty myu̇-ˌni-sə-ˈpa-lə-tē 

plural municipalities

1

: a primarily urban political unit having corporate (see corporate sense 1a) status and usually powers of self-government

Elections were held in the municipality.

2

: the governing body of a municipality

The municipality approved the budget for the year.

Synonyms

• asphalt jungle
• burg
• city
• cosmopolis
• megacity
• megalopolis
• metropolis
• town

Examples of municipality in a Sentence

laws that have been enacted by many states and municipalities

a municipality with an excellent police department

Recent Examples on the Web

Their bodies were discovered in 2010 and 2011 about 100 miles from the border in the municipality of San Fernando. —Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2024

The department would then notify the appropriate municipality who would then accept or reject the refund. —Madeline Armstrong | The Center Square, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 18 Aug. 2024

Alarms began ringing in the municipality of Toa Baja on Wednesday morning, warning residents who live in the western part of the town to evacuate their homes as incessant rain from Ernesto overflowed the main river there, exposing more families to dangerous floods. —Nicole Acevedo, NBC News, 14 Aug. 2024

The incident is one example of the conflict over how city officials are responding to the homelessness crisis that is affecting municipalities across the state. —Adrian Rodriguez, The Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1790, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

municipality

noun

mu·​nic·​i·​pal·​i·​ty myu̇-ˌnis-ə-ˈpal-ət-ē 

plural municipalities

: a self-governing city or town

Legal Definition

municipality

noun

mu·​nic·​i·​pal·​i·​ty myu̇-ˌni-sə-ˈpa-lə-tē 

plural municipalities

: a primarily urban municipal corporation

also : the governing body of a municipality