Phrase guide

county seat

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The city in which the offices of county government are located.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Lawrence is the county seat of Douglas County.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: shire town

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

the town or city that is the seat of government for a county

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: county courthouse

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: seat

History

Etymology

Compound of county + seat.

Across languages

Translations

11 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 縣城 /县城 (xiànchéng) — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Chinese Mandarin: 縣治 /县治 (xiànzhì) — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Cornish: se konteth — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Georgian: მუნიციპალიტეტის მთავარი ცენტრი (municiṗaliṭeṭis mtavari cenṭri) — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Georgian: ოლქის მთავარი ქალაქი (olkis mtavari kalaki) — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Hungarian: megyeszékhely — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Polish: siedziba hrabstwa — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Swedish: residensstad — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Swedish: länshuvudstad — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Vietnamese: quận lỵ — city in which the offices of county government are located
  • Vietnamese: quận lị — city in which the offices of county government are located