1
general::
noun place with many streets and buildings ADJ. big, large, major | little, small | nearby, neighbouring, surrounding | ancient, historic, medieval, old | new It was built as a new town in the 1960s. | industrial | busy a busy market town | boom, thriving London was a boom town and the stock market was soaring. a thriving holiday town | sleepy a sleepy provincial town in southern France | country, provincial | county Beverley was then the county town of the East Riding of Yorkshire (= the main town where the county offices were). | home, native She has gone back to live in her home town. | border | coastal, seaside | holiday, resort | cathedral, market, university | dormitory, satellite | fortified Kitzbuhel is an ancient fortified town with fine medieval buildings. | shanty | ghost It's been a ghost town since the gold rush ended. | twin Darlington's twin town of Amiens VERB + TOWN build, found | live in How many people live in the town? | get out of, leave, move out of He left town yesterday for a conference in York. They wanted to move out of town and start a new life in the country. TOWN + VERB grow | flourish TOWN + NOUN hall, square, walls | council | life | planning PREP. in ~ They'll be back in town tomorrow. | out of ~ I was out of town last week. an out-of-town superstore | outside (the) ~ a lake just outside the town PHRASES the centre/middle of (the) town, the edge/outskirts of (the) town main part of a town, with the shops, etc. VERB + TOWN go into I'm going into town?can I get you anything? PREP. in ~ Mum's in town doing some shopping.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
2
general::
town
ADJECTIVES/NOUN + town
small/big
• I grew up in a small town in Iowa. • The nearest big town is 20 miles away.
a little town
• a pretty little town in the French Alps
a major town
• It is one of the UK’s biggest retailers with shops in every major town.
busy/bustling
• The town was busy even in November.
quiet
• The town is quiet in the summer. • Cannigione is a quiet little town with a scattering of shops, restaurants and cafes.
sleepy
(= very quiet, with not much happening )
• Johnson grew up in the sleepy retirement town of Asheville.
a historic/ancient town
• Visitors can go on a tour of this historic town.
an industrial town
• Thousands moved to the newly forming industrial towns to work in the mills.
a seaside town
• young people looking for seasonal work in seaside towns
a provincial town
(= one that is not near the capital )
• Many provincial towns were transformed by the coming of the railway.
a market town
(= a town in Britain where there is a regular outdoor market )
• The pretty market town of Ashbourne is only 9 miles away.
sb’s home town
(= the town where someone was born )
• He was buried in his home town of Leeds.
a new town
(= one of several towns built in Britain since 1946 )
• The design of Milton Keynes and other new towns proved unpopular.
phrases
the centre of town/the town centre
British English , the center of town/the town center American English
• The hotel was right in the center of town.
the outskirts/edge of a town
• It was six o'clock when she reached the outskirts of the town.
transnet.ir
3
general::
In addition to the idiom beginning with TOWN, Also see ALL OVER THE PLACE (TOWN); GHOST TOWN; GO TO TOWN; MAN ABOUT TOWN; ONE-HORSE TOWN; ONLY GAME IN TOWN; ON THE TOWN; OUT OF TOWN; PAINT THE TOWN RED; TALK OF THE TOWN.
American Heritage Idioms