rural

adjective

ru·​ral ˈru̇r(-ə)l How to pronounce rural (audio)
ˈrər(-ə)l
Synonyms of rural
: of or relating to the country, country people or life, or agriculture
rurality
ru̇-ˈra-lə-tē How to pronounce rural (audio)
noun
rurally
ˈru̇r-ə-lē How to pronounce rural (audio)
ˈrər-
adverb

Synonyms of rural

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of rural in a Sentence

She lives in a rural area. grew up in a rural community where more than half the people were farmers
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.
In the northeastern rural town of Robinson, Kansas, Jack Geiger, a cattleman running as an independent for the state House of Representatives, also expressed disappointment with the decision to ease tariffs on beef imports. — Gaby Vinick, ABC News, 31 Aug. 2026 The change has delayed the release of new estimates from the American Community Survey and may ultimately reduce the amount of statistics the bureau can release about local areas and small populations, including rural communities. — Hansi Lo Wang, NPR, 31 Aug. 2026 Kelchen expects an uptick in closures rather than a massive wave, with schools in rural parts of the Northeast and Midwest facing particularly strong headwinds. — Tatiana Sataua, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2026 More than 12 million Americans live in banking deserts, most of them rural. — Michael Faulkender, Baltimore Sun, 31 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for rural

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin ruralis, from rur-, rus open land — more at room

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of rural was in the 15th century

Phrases Containing rural

Rhymes for rural

See All Rhymes for rural

Browse Nearby Words

rupturewort
rural
rural dean
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Rural.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rural. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

rural

adjective
ru·​ral ˈru̇r-əl How to pronounce rural (audio)
: of or relating to the country, country people or life, or agriculture
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All