Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

borough

/ˈbʌɹ.oʊ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 3.83 in modern English

Syllables
bo-rough
IPA
/ˈbʌɹ.oʊ/
13
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A town having a municipal corporation and certain traditional rights.

noun

An administrative district in some cities, e.g., London.

noun

An administrative unit of a city which, under most circumstances according to state or national law, would be considered a larger or more powerful entity.

American usage

noun

Other similar administrative units in cities and states in various parts of the world.

noun

A district in Alaska having powers similar to a county.

noun

An association of men who gave pledges or sureties to the king for the good behavior of each other.

British usage

noun

A fortified town.

Obsolete

noun

A town or city.

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English borwe, borgh, burgh, buruh, from Old English burh, burg, from Proto-West Germanic *burg, from Proto-Germanic *burgz (“stronghold, city”). Cognate with Dutch burcht, German Burg, Danish borg, Swedish borg, French bourg, Turkish burç. Doublet of Brough, burgh, and Bury.

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈbʌɹ.oʊ/
  • British English: /ˈbʌ.ɹə/

Usage

Inflected Forms

boroughs (plural) boro (alternative, US) bourg (alternative, obsolete) burough (alternative, obsolete) burrow (alternative, obsolete) The Borough (canonical)

Derived Forms

Borough Boroughbridge boroughholder boroughhood boroughitis boroughmaster boroughmonger boroughwide Brookeborough Foxborough Guysborough interborough

Phrases

-boro -borough borough council borough English Borough Green borough hall close borough Conwy County Borough

Frequently Paired Words

Brough burg burgh -bury

Homonyms

burgh (Received Pronunciation, Scotland) burrow (General American, Canada) burrow burgh

Rhymes With

thorough pocket borough rotten borough burgh royal burgh kookaburra burra burrow furrow

Questions

How do you pronounce borough?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈbʌɹ.oʊ/.
What does borough mean?
A town having a municipal corporation and certain traditional rights.
Where does borough come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce borough

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “borough”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈbʌɹ.oʊ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “borough”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “borough” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.