territorial

[ ter-i-tawr-ee-uhl, -tohr- ]

adjective

1. of or relating to territory or land.
2. of, pertaining to, associated with, or restricted to a particular territory or district; local.
3. pertaining or belonging to the territory of a state or ruler.
4. (of an animal) characterized by territoriality; defending an area against intruders, especially of the same species.
5. Often Territorial. of or relating to a territory of the United States.
6. Territorial, Military. organized on a local basis for home defense:

   the British Territorial Army.

noun

1. Territorial, a member of the British Territorial Army.
2. a soldier in a territorial army.

territorial

¹

/ ˌtɛrɪˈtɔːrɪəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to a territory or territories
2. restricted to or owned by a particular territory

   the Indian territorial waters

3. local or regional
4. pertaining to a territorial army, providing a reserve of trained men for use in emergency

Territorial

²

/ ˌtɛrɪˈtɔːrɪəl /

noun

1. a member of a territorial army, esp the British Army's Territorial and Volunteer Reserve

Derived Forms

• ˌterriˈtorially, adverb

Other Words From

• terri·tori·al·ly adverb
• nonter·ri·tori·al adjective
• nonter·ri·tori·al·ly adverb
• preter·ri·tori·al adjective
• quasi-terri·tori·al adjective
• quasi-terri·tori·al·ly adverb
• subter·ri·tori·al adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of territorial¹

First recorded in 1615–25; from Late Latin territōriāli; territory, -al ¹

Example Sentences

Despite its territorial gains, Russia's advance has come at a huge cost.

From BBC

Under Xi’s leadership in recent years, China has also become more assertive in its territorial claims over Taiwan and the South China Sea.

From BBC

According to the Kremlin, Putin told Scholz that any potential peace agreement must “be based on the new territorial realities” — in other words the Ukrainian territory that Russia has occupied since 2022.

From BBC

Big territorial losses and heavy scoreboard damage can result.

From BBC

Russian territorial gains in October were the largest since March 2022, according to analysis of Institute for the Study of War data by the AFP news agency.

From BBC

Related Words

• provincial