Meaning & use
provincial council
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Meanings
nouncountable
An official group that governs or advises on matters within a province, a large administrative region of a country.
Grammar: Countable and usually written with a capital C when it is the official name of a body: the Provincial Council of Alberta.
Patterns
- the provincial council of somewhere
- a provincial council meeting
- sit on a provincial council
The provincial council met in the capital to discuss rural roads.
She was elected to the provincial council for a four-year term.
A provincial council can advise the national government but cannot change national law.
nouncountablereligion
A church assembly that represents the bishops and clergy of one province or region.
Grammar: Often part of a formal title, so it may be capitalized: the Provincial Council of Canterbury.
Patterns
- hold a provincial council
- decrees of a provincial council
The archbishop called a provincial council to settle the dispute.
Decisions of the provincial council were read out in every parish.
nouncountableregional
In some countries, a local elected body that manages services such as schools, health, or roads for a province.
Grammar: Often plural when talking about the system as a whole: provincial councils across the country.
Patterns
- provincial councils across somewhere
- fund something through a provincial council
Provincial councils are responsible for maintaining secondary schools in that region.
The health budget is set by the provincial council, not by the town.
Word forms
| plural | provincial councils |
|---|
Common combinations
- meet on the provincial council
- She met the mayor on the provincial council, where they worked on the same committee.
- provincial council elections
- Provincial council elections are held every five years.
- dissolve a provincial council
- The governor can dissolve a provincial council and call new elections.
- a member of the provincial council
- He has been a member of the provincial council since 2019.
- provincial council budget
- Most of the provincial council budget goes to teachers' salaries.
Synonyms and how they differ
- regional assembly
- Close in meaning, but 'assembly' usually suggests a law-making body, while a provincial council may only advise.
- county council
- Similar structure but at a smaller level; use it for counties, not provinces.
- synod
- Use this for a church meeting of clergy; it is narrower and more religious than 'provincial council'.
Word family
- province noun
- A large administrative region within a country.
- provincial adjective
- Relating to a province, or (disapproving) narrow-minded and unsophisticated.
- councilor noun
- A person who serves on a council.
Commonly confused: provincial council or counsel? provincial council or provincial counsel?
provincial council vs counsel
'Council' is a group of people; 'counsel' means advice or a lawyer. The two sound the same in many accents, so check the spelling.
provincial council vs provincial counsel
This would mean a lawyer working for a province, not an elected or governing body.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'provincial council' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Provincial council' is a countable noun for a governing or advisory body, so it can be the subject of 'approved'. Option 0 confuses it with 'counsel' (advice), and options 2 and 3 use it as an adjective or verb, which it is not.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “provincial council”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.