Meaning & use
rural
Last updated
UK/ˈrʊərəl/
US/ˈrʊrəl/
Meaning
adjectivenot comparable
Connected with the countryside, farms and small villages rather than towns or cities.
Grammar: Usually before a noun: a rural area.
Patterns
- a rural area
- rural life
Many rural areas have no fast internet.
She grew up in a quiet rural community.
Common combinations
- rural area
- The clinic serves a rural area.
- rural community
- The rural community depends on farming.
- rural development
- The grant supports rural development.
- rural life
- He loves the slow pace of rural life.
- rural road
- The rural roads flood in spring.
Synonyms and how they differ
- rustic
- Suggests a simple, old-fashioned country charm.
- pastoral
- Evokes idealized farm and shepherd life, often in literature.
- country
- Informal and often used before a noun, like country roads.
Opposites
urbanmetropolitan
Word family
- ruralism noun
- a rural way of life
- rurality noun
- the quality of being rural
Commonly confused: rural or rustic?
rural vs rustic
Rustic describes a style or look; rural describes a place.
Practice
Many young people leave the ___ areas to find jobs in the city.
Choose one answer.
Rural areas are the countryside, which people leave for a city. Urban is the opposite and would not make sense.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “rural”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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