township

noun

town·ship ˈtau̇n-ˌship

: town sense 5

: a unit of local government in some northeastern and north central states usually having a chief administrative officer or board

: an unorganized subdivision of the county in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont

: an electoral and administrative district of the county in the southern U.S.

: a division of territory in surveys of U.S. public land containing 36 sections or 36 square miles

: an area in the Republic of South Africa that was segregated under apartheid for occupation by persons of non-European descent

: an ancient unit of administration in England identical in area with or a division of a parish

Examples of township in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Neighbors said there were other ways the township could have gone about this, both from the perspective of tackling the issue and how little they were kept in the loop. — Ricky Sayer, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026 That’s according to reporting by PennLive, which notes that nearly 17 percent of the township’s residents live below the federal poverty line. — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 15 Oct. 2026 The land in Township 13, my township, turned out to be mixed. — James Whorton Jr, Longreads, 13 Oct. 2026 The Wall Street Journal was first to report the $10,000 incentive, which would only be paid once the first building of the data center campus is complete, and which was largely rejected by the township’s residents. — Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 4 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for township

Word History

First Known Use

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Time Traveler

The first known use of township was in the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Browse Nearby Words

townsfolk

township

township line

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Township.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/township. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

township

noun

town·ship ˈtau̇n-ˌship

: a unit of local government in some northeastern and north central states

: a division of territory in surveys of U.S. public land containing 36 square miles (about 93 square kilometers)

township

noun

Examples of township in a Sentence

Word History

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition

More from Merriam-Webster on township

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

milieu

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes