Meaning & use

utility

noun·Academic

The quality of being useful or practical, or a public service such as electricity, water, or gas.

See it in a sentence

The tool's real utility lies in how easily it adapts to different kinds of repairs.

Residents complained after the local utility raised electricity prices for the third time this year.

A note on using this word

Utility often appears in the plural, utilities, to refer collectively to essential services like water, gas, and electricity.

Words with a similar meaning

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

Words with an opposite meaning

uselessness

Make it your own

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