territory

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

noun

, plural ter·ri·to·ries.

1. any tract of land; region or district.
2. the land and waters belonging to or under the jurisdiction of a state, sovereign, etc.

   Synonyms: sovereignty, dominion, domain

3. any separate tract of land belonging to a state.
4. (often initial capital letter) Government.
   1. a region or district of the U.S. not admitted to the Union as a state but having its own legislature, with a governor and other officers appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
   2. some similar district elsewhere, as in Canada and Australia.
5. a field or sphere of action, thought, etc.; domain or province of something.
6. the region or district assigned to a representative, agent, or the like, as for making sales.
7. the area that an animal defends against intruders, especially of the same species.

Territory

¹

/ ˈtɛrɪtərɪ; -trɪ /

noun

1. the Territory
   See Northern Territory

territory

²

/ ˈtɛrɪtərɪ; -trɪ /

noun

1. any tract of land; district
2. the geographical domain under the jurisdiction of a political unit, esp of a sovereign state
3. the district for which an agent, etc, is responsible

   a salesman's territory

4. an area inhabited and defended by an individual animal or a breeding group of animals
5. an area of knowledge

   science isn't my territory

6. (in football, hockey, etc) the area defended by a team
7. often capital a region of a country, esp of a federal state, that enjoys less autonomy and a lower status than most constituent parts of the state
8. often capital a protectorate or other dependency of a country

territory

/ tĕr′ĭ-tôr′ē /

1. A geographic area occupied by a single animal, mating pair, or group. Animals usually defend their territory vigorously against intruders, especially of the same species, but the defense often takes the form of prominent, threatening displays rather than out-and-out fighting. Different animals mark off territory in different ways, as by leaving traces of their scent along the boundaries or, in the case of birds, modifying their calls to keep out intruders.

Other Words From

• sub·terri·tory noun plural subterritories

Word History and Origins

Origin of territory¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin territōrium “land around a town, district,” from terr(a) “land” + -i- -i- + -tōrium -tory ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of territory¹

C15: from Latin territōrium land surrounding a town, from terra land

Idioms and Phrases

see come with the territory ; cover the field (territory) .

Example Sentences

More than 43,700 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

From BBC

Under the laws of war, the forced displacement of any civilians inside an occupied territory is prohibited, unless it is necessary for their security or for an imperative military reason.

From BBC

Israeli government ministers are also cited as saying that Gaza’s territory would decrease and that land would be handed to Israeli settlers.

From BBC

About 1.9 million people - 90% of Gaza’s population - have fled their homes over the past year, and 79% of the territory is under Israeli-issued evacuation orders, according to the UN.

From BBC

On Monday, Smotrich said that 2025 would be "the year of sovereignty" in the West Bank, adding that he had instructed Israeli authorities to begin preparatory work for annexation of the occupied territory.

From BBC

Related Words

• area
• colony
• country
• district
• enclave
• field
• land
• nation
• neighborhood
• province
• sector
• state
• street
• terrain
• zone