Meaning & use
public industry
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Meanings
nouncountablebusinessfinance
An industry that is owned or controlled by the government, such as national railways or postal services.
Grammar: Countable; you can talk about 'a public industry' or 'public industries'.
Patterns
- a public industry
- public industries
- nationalize a public industry
Coal mining was once a major public industry in that country.
The government plans to invest more in public industries like water and electricity.
Public industries often receive subsidies to keep prices low.
noununcountablebusinessfinance
The sector of the economy made up of industries owned by the government.
Grammar: Uncountable when referring to the whole sector: 'the role of public industry'.
Patterns
- the public industry sector
- the role of public industry
The report compares public industry with private industry in terms of efficiency.
Public industry expanded rapidly after the war.
Word forms
| plural | public industries |
|---|
Common combinations
- nationalize a public industry
- The government decided to nationalize the steel industry, making it a public industry.
- public industry sector
- The public industry sector is large in some European countries.
- invest in public industry
- The budget includes money to invest in public industry.
- state-owned public industry
- The electricity provider is a state-owned public industry.
Synonyms and how they differ
- nationalized industry
- An industry that was previously private and then taken over by the government; a more specific term.
- state-owned industry
- Similar, but emphasizes ownership by the state; common in official reports.
- public sector
- A broader term for all government-owned services and industries, not just one industry.
Opposites
Word family
- industry noun
- The production of goods in factories, or a particular branch of business.
- industrial adjective
- Relating to industry or factories.
- industrialize verb
- To develop industries in a country or region.
Commonly confused: public industry or public enterprise?
public industry vs public enterprise
A public enterprise is a single government-owned business; a public industry is a whole branch of the economy owned by the government. They overlap but are not identical.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'public industry' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A national railway owned by the government is a clear example of a public industry. Option A confuses it with the public sector (teaching is a public service, not an industry). Option C is wrong because public industries are not usually traded on the stock market. Option D is nonsense.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “public industry”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.