COUNTY


Meaning of COUNTY in English

/ ˈkaʊnti; NAmE / noun , adjective

■ noun

( pl. -ies ) ( abbr. Co. ) an area of Britain, Ireland or the US that has its own government :

the southern counties

county boundaries

Orange County

—see also the Home Counties

■ adjective

( BrE , usually disapproving ) typical of English upper-class people

••

WORD ORIGIN

Middle English : from Old French conte , from Latin comitatus , from comes , comit- companion, overseer, attendant (in late Latin person holding a state office), from com- together with + it- gone (from the verb ire go). The word seems first to have denoted a periodical meeting held to transact business in the area (the shire).

Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.