Meaning & use

provincial

adjective·Academic

Relating to a province or region outside the capital, or narrow-minded and unsophisticated in outlook.

See it in a sentence

The provincial government controls funding for local schools and roads.

City critics dismissed his tastes as hopelessly provincial and old-fashioned.

A note on using this word

Provincial can be neutral, referring to a geographic province, or critical, implying limited or unsophisticated views.

Words with a similar meaning

regionalnarrow-minded

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

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