# county

Pronunciation: say "KOWN-tee" US /ˈkaʊn(t)i/, UK /ˈkaʊnti/

## Noun

1. One of the regions into which a country or a US state is divided, usually with its own local government; in some places a traditional area that no longer has one.
   - Simple: One of the areas that a country or US state is divided into, usually with its own local government.
   - _The county approved a new budget for road repairs this year._
   - _Yorkshire was historically the largest county in England._
2. A jail run by a county government rather than by the state or a city. *(slang, US)*
   - Simple: The local jail that a county government runs.
   - _The judge sent him to county for ninety days on the misdemeanor charge._
   - _She bailed her cousin out of county before the weekend._
3. The territory held and governed by a count or a countess.
   - Simple: The land that a count or countess ruled in the past.
   - _The county passed to the count's eldest son upon his death._
   - _She ruled the county for two decades after her husband died._

## Adjective

4. Characteristic of the landed gentry or aristocracy of a county; typical of so-called 'county families.' *(British)*
   - Simple: Typical of the old, important landowning families of a country area.
   - _His tweed jackets and country pursuits gave him a thoroughly county air._
   - _The wedding had a distinctly county feel, all horses and old family names._

## Origin

This word came from Middle English countee, from Anglo-Norman counté and Old French conté, from Latin comitātus ('the jurisdiction of a count'), from comes ('count, earl'). It is related to Spanish condado and Italian contea, and it mostly replaced the native Old English sċīr, which became Modern English shire.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/county (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).