regionn.
/ˈriːdʒ(ə)n/, U.S. /ˈridʒ(ə)n/ I. A subdivision of the earth or universe.
1. † a. A kingdom; a realm. Also figurative. Obsolete.In figurative use cf. sense 2.† c. Countryside; also in plural in same sense. Obsolete.Only in biblical translations rendering Latin regio, where later versions usually use the word field.† d. As a mass noun: land; territory. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > territorial jurisdiction or areas subject to > jurisdiction or territory of specific rulers or nobles > [noun] > of king or royal ruler
richeeOE
worldricheeOE
kindomeOE
kinrikeOE
kingriklOE
kine-erdc1275
kine-landc1275
kine-thedec1275
reigna1300
kine-earthc1300
realmc1300
kingdoma1325
kinglanda1325
regionc1330
ligeancec1380
regneec1380
realtya1387
royalme1389
kingheada1393
regalty?a1400
rialmec1400
monarchy?a1425
rialtya1425
regaly?a1439
regality1486
richdom?1505
state1539
kingdomshipa1549
sceptre-rule1611
royalty1638
kingship1700
raj1781
c1330 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Auch.) (1952) 191 (MED) Alisaunder of his regioun Þouȝt þer make þe maister toun.
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 282 Þre regions in his bandons salle be laid, Scotland & Wales..&..Bretayn.
c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) 1224 Hir eyen caste she ful lowe adown Ther Pluto hath his dirke Regioun.
c1430 (c1386) G. Chaucer Legend Good Women (Cambr. Gg.4.27) (1879) l. 1445 If..thw this famous tresore myghtist wynne And bryngen it myn regioun with-inne.
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1865) I. 59 (MED) The grete see is namede in diuerse maners for diuerse regiones [a1387 J. Trevisa tr. kyngdoms], yles, cites, and peple that hit compassethe.
c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) lxxxii. 255 In what place of your regyon thynke you that ye ought too iuge of the peeres of Fraunce?
1557 T. North tr. A. de Guevara Diall Princes xxv. f. 25v/1 After Gracian came to the empyre, many byshopes..were restored to the Churche againe, and banished all the sect of the Arryens out of his region.
1577 R. Willes & R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Hist. Trauayle W. & E. Indies f. 26 The ambassadours..threatned hym, that if he woulde so doo, the other kynges woulde inuade his region.
1638 T. Habington tr. Gildas Epist. 94 The just King (according to the Prophet) raiseth up his Region.
1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd iv. 67 Embassies from Regions far remote In various habits on the Appian road. View more context for this quotation
1745 G. S. Green tr. N.-F. Dupré de Saint-Maur State of Innocence xii. i. 429 He shall surprize the Serpent, the Prince of the Power of the Air; drag him in Chains through all his Region, and leave him there confounded.
b. A land; a country; any large portion of the earth's surface considered as defined or distinguished from adjacent areas in some way, as by culture, government, topography, climate, fauna or flora, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > region of the earth > [noun]
endc893
earthOE
coastc1315
plagea1382
provincea1382
regiona1382
countrya1387
partya1387
climatea1398
partc1400
nookc1450
corner1535
subregion1559
parcel1582
quart1590
climature1604
latitudea1640
area1671
district1712
zone1829
natural region1888
sector1943
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1959) Gen. xxxvi. 6 Esau forsoþ toke his wyues & sonnes & douȝtren..& all þat he miȝte haue in þe lond of chanaan & ȝede into anoþer regyoun.
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 96v If blood is þe cause [of arthritis] it is I-knowe..bi age & by a regioun I-liche, for it meuyþ most in a springinge tyme.
c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1115 In thilke colde frosty Region..Mars hath his souereyn mansion.
?c1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (Paris) (1971) 174 (MED) Vena meden..is multeplied in..hote regiouns.
c1470 tr. R. D'Argenteuil's French Bible (Cleveland) (1977) 88 (MED) Thus ben the Iuwes..disparplid by diuerse londis, regions, and cuntrees.
a1500 Legend of Cross in Medium Ævum (1965) 34 220 (MED) Ther was a man..in the regioun adiacent or liggyng nygh to thendis and boundis of Jerusalem..ordeigned bi grace to pray.
1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes ii. 188 Whiche Lybia is a region or coste of the countree of Afrike, boundyng vpon Aegypte.
1585 T. Washington tr. N. de Nicolay Nauigations Turkie iii. iii. f. 73 The Macedonian Phalangue with the which Alexander the great extended his domination and monarchy almoste vpon all the regions of the earth.
1625 N. Carpenter Geogr. Delineated ii. i. 5 Navigatours which haue discouered few or no Regions wanting some Inhabitants.
1665 T. Manley tr. H. Grotius De Rebus Belgicis 417 All this Region is divided, though somewhat unequally, between wild Beasts, and these Savage men.
1710 Tatler No. 222 A Man might as well serenade in Greenland as in our Region.
1744 J. Thomson Winter in Seasons (new ed.) 210 Among those hilly Regions, where embrac'd In peaceful Vales the happy Grisons dwell.
1792 J. Barlow Conspiracy of Kings 86 Truth's blest banners, o'er the regions hurl'd.
1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles iii. xvii. 103 But late you said No steps these desert regions tread!
1857 Sclater in Jrnl. Proc. Linn. Soc., Zool. (1858) 2 143 South America is the most peculiar of all the primary regions in the globe as to its ornithology.
1870 J. Yeats Nat. Hist. Commerce 1 The inhabitants of any one region may, by exchange, become possessed of the abundance and variety of all other regions.
1911 Catholic Encycl. X. 596/2 God...designates him..to conduct them into the ‘land of milk and honey’, the region long since promised to the seed of Abraham.
1950 R. Macaulay World my Wilderness xx. 144 You were very wise, Madame, to send your young daughter and your stepson away from this region, where they had, I know, some undesirable friends.
2000 Native Peoples: Arts & Lifeways No. 5. 26/4 The handsome red and white Anasazi beans in the hearty soup..have been cultivated continuously in this region for at least 1,000 years.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > district in relation to human occupation > country as opposed to town > [noun]
landc900
fieldeOE
uplanda1122
countryc1300
regiona1382
monkerya1790
countryside1815
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1963) 3 Kings xvi. 4 Who were dead of baasa in þe cite, houndis schuln etyn hym, & who were dead of hym in þe regioun [a1425 L.V. feeld; L. in regione], schul etyn hym þe foowlis of heuene.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1969) Isa. lv. 12 Mounteynes & hillis shul singen befor ȝou preising: & alle þe trees of þe regioun shul flappe for ioȝe with hond.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1969) Jer. vii. 20 My wodnesse & myn indignacioun is molten vp on þis place, vp on the wallis & vp on þe beestis & vp on þe tree of þe regioun & vp on þe frutes of þe erþe.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) John iv. 35 Lift vp ȝoure yȝen and se ȝe the regiouns [L. regiones], or cuntrees, for now thei ben white to ripe corn.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) John iv. f. cxxiiijv Lyfte vppe youre eyes, and loke on the regions: For they are whyte allredy vnto harvest.
1560 Bible (Geneva) John iv. 35 I say vnto you, Lift vp your eyes, and loke on the regions: for they are white already vnto haruest.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > land > [noun]
landc900
groundOE
earthOE
dry landa1225
sandc1275
dry1382
continent1590
fastland1680
terra firma1692
region1697
firm land1872
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iv, in tr. Virgil Wks. 134 That length of Region [L. regio], and large Tract of Ground. View more context for this quotation
e. Chiefly Politics and Economics. An area of the world encompassing several neighbouring states that, from an international standpoint, are considered socially, economically, or politically interdependent.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > a or the state > [noun] > area of interdependent states
region1925
1925 W. S. Culbertson Internat. Econ. Policies App. ix. 549 Regional or world conferences..to establish in regions, or with respect to subjects in the agenda, ‘a workable basis of coöperation among the nations of the earth’.
1948 G. A. Johnson in K. M. Panikkar et al. Regionalism & Security 45 There are..yet few who would..divide the world into regions, each a federation.
1977 M. Hudson Global Fracture xiii. 167 Regional consolidation is occurring within five broad geopolitical blocs... Each of these regions is characterized by a broad range of complementary products.
2007 Daily Mail (Nexis) 24 Mar. 24 It would send a very powerful message to other regions riven by religious-based conflict, such as the Balkans and the Middle East.
2. A zone or division of the world or universe, as the air, heaven, etc. Also with of: a metaphysical zone or place of this sort considered as characterized by or subject to certain influences, features, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > [noun] > part of
worldc1175
regionc1350
realm1565
possible worlda1674
by-world1709
c1350 Ayenbite (1866) App. 268 (MED) Þe zuete smel ine hare regyon zuo zuete ys þet alle manyre zuete smelles ouercomþ.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Isa. ix. 2 To the men dwellende in the regioun [a1425 L.V. cuntre; L. regione] of the shadewe of deth, liȝt sprungen is to them.
c1450 (c1380) G. Chaucer House of Fame (Fairf. 16) (1878) l. 929 Beholde this large place This eyre..in this Region..Duelleth..eyryssh bestes.
1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 97 Bulles of fyre so grete that they enflamed alle the regyon of the ayer.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Matt. iv. f. iiijv To them which sate in the region and shadowe off deeth.
1549 Bk. Common Prayer (STC 16267) Buriall, f. xxviii* That he escaping the gates of hell and paynes of eternall derkenes: may euer dwel in the region of lighte.
c1550 Complaynt Scotl. (1979) vi. 37 The varld is diuidit in tua partis..the regione elementair quhilk is subiect til..corruptione..[and] the regione celest [which]..is diuidit in ten speris.
1601 S. Daniel Epist. to C'tess Cumberland ii With how free an eye doth he looke downe Vpon these lower regions of turmoyle.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) v. iii. 11 Ye Familiar Spirits, that are cull'd Out of the powerfull Regions vnder earth. View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost i. 65 Darkness visible Serv'd only to discover sights of woe, Regions of sorrow. View more context for this quotation
1730 J. Thomson Winter in Seasons 197 In what far-distant region of the sky, Hush'd in dead silence, sleep you when 'tis calm?
1750 S. Johnson Rambler No. 36. ⁋1 We..suffer ourselves..to be transported to elysian regions.
1820 P. B. Shelley Ode to Liberty x, in Prometheus Unbound 215 As light may pierce the clouds when they dissever In the calm regions of the orient day.
1866 G. MacDonald Ann. Quiet Neighb. (1878) xxix. 497 We know nothing of the region beyond the grave!
1904 J. London Sea-wolf xvii. 157 Slowly the whole eastern sky filled with clouds that overtowered us like some black sierra of the infernal regions.
1943 Times 3 Sept. 6/6 A wild youth..and an over-fond eye for the chorus and champagne—these are not sufficient recommendations for a passport to the infernal regions.
2002 Jrnl. Hist. Ideas 63 255 The Aristotelian distinction between the perfect and immutable heavens and the corruptible sublunary regions.
3.
a. Each of the portions into which the atmosphere or (in later use) the sea is notionally divided according to height or depth.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > water > sea or ocean > region of sea or ocean > [noun] > section according to depth
regiona1398
the world > matter > gas > air > [noun] > air above our heads > portion of
regiona1398
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 136 A Cloude is..I-made..of many vapoures I-gadred in to one body in þe myddel regioun of þe eyr.
a1475 in Neuphilol. Mitteilungen (1957) 58 60 (MED) The eyer ys devyded into thre partes or regyons of diverse dysposicion and qualiteyes.
1563 W. Fulke Goodle Gallerye Causes Meteors ii. f. 7 Some parte of it being caried vp into the highest region, by the fiery heate is set on fier.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) iii. ii. 67 He is of too high a Region, he knows too much. View more context for this quotation
1671 R. Boyle Temperature Submarine Regions iii. 8 To justifie my ascribing of this Coldnesse to the second, or lower Region of the Sea, I shall now subjoin some Relations.
1704 J. Harris Lexicon Technicum I. (at cited word) Regions of the Air, are distinguished into Upper, Middle, and Lower.
1760 C. Lennox Lady's Museum No. 2. xii. 100 The upper region of the air, says a sensible French writer, admits neither clouds nor tempests.
1843 J. Ruskin Mod. Painters I. 196 I shall therefore consider the sky as divided into three regions, the upper region, or region of the cirrus [etc.].
1883 Good Words Aug. 530/1 Below the littoral we come upon the great laminarian zone, the region of waving laminaria.
1946 H. Woods Palæontol. Invertebr. (ed. 8) 297 The Deep Sea and Abyssal Region begins at the edge of the continental shelf.
1947 Sci. News 5 117 Even on the equator, all really violent downpours seem to come from clouds which reach well up into the crystal region.
1998 New Scientist 14 Nov. 44/3 The lidar will monitor the mesosphere, a mysterious region of the atmosphere extending from 90 to 120 kilometres above the Earth's surface.
b. In ancient and medieval geography: each of the bands of the earth's surface defined by parallels of latitude. Cf. climate n.1 1a. rare. Now historical.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > region of the earth > zone or belt > [noun]
linea1387
climatea1393
clime1553
region1556
zone1559
belt1796
subzone1851
dead zone1926
1556 R. Record Castle of Knowl. 91 I meane by a Region that whiche the Grekes do call a Climate;..the climates may well be accompted 48 betwene the twoo polare circles.
1985 Jewish Q. Rev. 76 13 The seven pillars of wisdom have been variously interpreted: the seven firmaments or heavens, the seven planets, the seven regions or climates [etc.].
4.
a. An administrative division; a subdivision of a larger geographical or political unit, for economic, administrative, or cultural purposes. In later use esp.: such a subdivision specifically created to form part of a system of local government or administration, or defined for the purposes of demographic surveying, planning, etc.spec. in Scotland (1975–96), any of the local government areas that replaced the former system of counties and were subsequently replaced by council areas; in France, any of the 26 administrative areas into which the country has been divided since 1964 (together with five overseas regions added in 1982), further subdivided into departments (see department n. 4a).
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > territorial jurisdiction or areas subject to > an administrative division of territory > [noun] > large or culturally distinct division
provincea1382
government1554
region1555
rulership1882
society > authority > rule or government > territorial jurisdiction or areas subject to > an administrative division of territory > [noun]
purprisea1275
member?a1425
precinct1447
lordshipa1450
captainate1593
region1593
partiality1601
division1640
peopledom1657
convent1658
district1667
mastership1707
superintendency1798
area1849
1555 R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde i. iv. f. 20v He graunted them theyr requeste: and appoynted such order that euery Region shulde paye their tribute, with the commodities of theyr countreys, accordinge to theyr portion, and at suche tyme as they were agreed vppon.
1574 J. Higgins 1st Pt. Mirour for Magistrates f. 70v First that you as the other Regions paye, Us tribute yearely.
1593 T. Bilson Perpetual Govt. Christes Church 282 Every Bishop had his region or Diocese besides his Citie.
a1600 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie vii. viii, in Wks. (1662) 21 The Roman Governor..gave charge that Macedonia should be divided into four Regions or Diocesses.
1673 J. Ray Observ. Journey Low-countries 151 This City [sc. Venice] is..divided into six parts or regions, called thence Sestieri.
1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall II. xvii. 21 He divided Constantinople into fourteen regions or quarters.
1841 W. Spalding Italy & Ital. Islands I. 319 No new nomenclature seems to have been introduced, each province being merely called a Region... The following were the Augustan Regions.
1854 N. Wiseman Fabiola 80 One of the seven regions into which Pope Cajus..had divided the city.
1910 Encycl. Brit. I. 569/2 The Greek Alexandria was divided into three regions.
1950 Ormrod & Walker Butterworth's Annotated Legislation Service: Statutes Suppl. No. 63 i. 10 England and Wales are divided into fourteen hospital regions, each administered by a Regional Hospital Board.
1969 Times 2 June 8/2 To prevent his countrymen falling back into the ways of the Fourth Republic, he travelled through each of the 21 regions.
1976 Scottish Daily Express 23 Dec. 6/6 Even in booming Aberdeen and the thriving Grampian Region there are troubles between the two councils.
1989 A. Mabileau et al. Local Politics & Participation in Brit. & France i. ii. 24 In France,..there is a considerable disparity between local authorities at all levels and, with the obvious exception of the regions, they have not been much altered since the Revolution.
2001 I. Hardill et al. Human Geog. of UK xiv. 195/1 Some areas will be defined as regions for one purpose and others for a quite different purpose. The Standard Statistical Regions of England..differ somewhat from the Department of Trade and Industry regions, which differ from the Environment Agency regions..and so on.
2008 Sydney Morning Herald (Nexis) 6 Dec. 5 The hospital's director of renal medicine and chairman of the medical staff council for the western Sydney region, wrote to the NSW Health Minister..saying doctors were in ‘despair’.
b. Broadcasting (chiefly British). A part of the country covered by a specific programme service or broadcasting company; such a broadcasting company itself.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > broadcasting > broadcasting service > [noun] > area covered by
region1929
coverage1930
TV region1948
television region1949
1929 Radio Times 8 Nov. 442/1 The Northern Region—Manchester 22Y 797 kc/s. (376·4 m.)
1949 Radio Times 15 July 12/4 In Other Regions—Midland (296·2 m)..North (449·1 m), [etc.].
1968 Listener 25 July 123/2 This was a good effort by a small ITV region—Anglia—and the old companies of ITV have been putting on quite a brave show.
1992 Darts World Oct. 4/2 This will be televised by Anglia TV (who previously covered the British Matchplay) and shown by a number of ITV regions.
2008 Prep. Digital Switchover (National Audit Office) i. 13 Switchover will be implemented across the rest of the UK, television region by television region.
c. Chiefly British. In plural. With the. The parts of a country outside the capital or chief seat of government. Cf. province n. 6.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > district in relation to human occupation > a land or country > part of country or district > [noun] > the provinces
provinces1789
region1949
1949 Econ. Jrnl. 59 335 It will also be of interest to consider the effect of these structural changes on diversity of employment in the regions.
1972 Guardian 24 Mar. 14/2 Ministers must..keep open minds about public investment and public enterprise in the regions.
1982 R. Sheppard & M. Valpy National Deal vi. 125 The notion that he was some centralizer from Ontario, who did not understand the regions, was in his view monumentally unfair.
2003 Independent 12 Nov. i. 16/1 His review of the plethora of agencies, quangos and NDPBs (non-departmental public bodies) makes much of devolving power to the regions.
II. A subdivision of a whole, regarded as having extent.
5. An area of the body or of a part of the body, organ, etc.; (Anatomy, Medicine, and Zoology) such an area defined by surface landmarks, proximity to an organ, vascular supply, innervation, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > part of body > [noun] > region
steadc1000
regiona1398
zona1706
territory1824
tract1841
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 95v Suche a passioun & euel is I-cured by..medycines..I-laide to and namliche vp on þe regioun of þe lyuour.
c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1897 Euery lacerte in his brest..Is shent..Al is to brosten thilke regioun.
c1454 R. Pecock Folewer to Donet 41 In mannys bodi..ben þre principal regions..þe nurischyng regioun, þe lijfli regioun, and þe witti regioun.
c1475 ( Surg. Treat. in MS Wellcome 564 f. 119v (MED) Þe wounde is in þe liftside aboute þe regioun of þe herte.
?1541 R. Copland Guy de Chauliac's Questyonary Cyrurgyens ii. sig. Eiijv In the region of the blacke of the eye.
1576 G. Baker tr. C. Gesner Newe Jewell of Health ii. f. 46 v This water drunke euery morning..and applying of it on the region of the heart, heateth a colde stomacke.
1597 W. Langham Garden of Health 133 Applied to the region of the milt, it doeth soften it.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Othello (1622) iv. i. 82 The Iibes, and notable scornes, That dwell in euery region of his face. View more context for this quotation
1626 F. Bacon Sylua Syluarum §65 To draw away the Reliques of the Humours, that may haue descended to the Lower Regions of the Body.
1687 in W. Fraser Earls of Cromartie (1876) I. 51 But abow all, yow must keep the first region of your bodie cleane.
1707 J. Floyer Physician's Pulse-watch 350 The celiac Branches of the Artery..send Branches to all the Viscera in the middle Region.
1772 J. M. Adair Comm. Princ. & Pract. Physic v. ix. 533 Has for some months complained of a sense of load and anxiety about the region of the heart.
1839 T. De Quincey Lake Reminiscences in Tait's Edinb. Mag. Jan. 9/1 The mouth, and the region of the mouth..were about the strongest feature in Wordsworth's face.
1881 St. G. Mivart Cat 60 The skull is said to be divided into certain regions.
1891 T. Hardy Tess of the D'Urbervilles III. li. 186 A sudden rebellious sense of injustice caused the region of her eyes to swell with the rush of hot tears.
1908 A. K. Haagner & R. H. Ivy Sketches S. Afr. Bird-life iii. 55 The Martial Eagle..is dark sepia above and below, except the abdominal regions.
1960 D. C. Braungart & R. Buddeke Introd. Animal Biol. (ed. 5) xi. 154 The stomach is divided into two parts: the anterior and larger part is called the cardiac region, the smaller, posterior part is called the pyloric region.
1999 D. Ingram & N. Robertson Plant Dis. v. 116 ‘Gangrenous ergotism’ began with a vague lassitude and pains in the lumbar region.
6.
a. Any area, space, or place of more or less definite extent or character; a distinct part or portion of a larger whole. Also: the area surrounding something; the vicinity (chiefly in in the region of at sense 6c). Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > [noun] > defined or limited portion of space > a particular extent or region
coastc1320
confinec1400
quarterc1400
region?1537
leet1567
demesne1597
floor1626
area1700
department1832
parallel1887
the world > space > place > [noun] > a locality
list?1614
ubiquitya1637
headquarters1647
region1726
locale1761
locality1770
ubity1964
?1537 T. Elyot Castell of Helthe iv. viii. f. 80v In vrine, foure thynges are to be consydered, that is to saye, the substance, the colour, the regions or partes of the vryne, and the contentes or thynges therin conteined.
1547 R. Record Vrinal of Physick f. 17 If it [sc. sediment] be so lyght, that it swym in the myddle region of the urine, then it is called the sublation or swym.
1605 A. Willet Hexapla in Genesin vii. 87 That there was capacitie sufficient in the lowest region of the arke wherein to laie vp food for the cattaile, thus it may appeare, [etc.].
1651 N. Highmore Hist. Generation vi. 49 For those Atomes..will set themselves to work, and falling to their proper place, the lowest region of the Sprig, collect themselves in the same method they should have done in the root.
1700 T. Brown Amusem. Serious & Comical ii. 11 Let's Steer for the Court, for that's the Region which will furnish us with the finest Lessons.
1726 G. Leoni tr. L. B. Alberti Architecture I. 2/1 The Region..shall be the whole large open Place in which we are to build, and of which the Seat or Platform shall be only a Part.
1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby xvi. 143 Within the precincts of the ancient city of Westminster..is a narrow and dirty region.
1871 A. Edwardes Ought we to visit Her? III. viii. 131 The ginger-beer stalls and Aunt Sallies of the back regions.
1910 Scribner's Mag. June 702/2 Mrs. Benson..had an incumbrance, which she kept as far as might be in the lower regions of her house..: a shambling son.
1934 K. O'Brien Ante-room i. i. 15 She thought she heard a movement, but her senses did not function surely now beyond the immediate region of her bed.
1965 ‘W. Trevor’ Boarding-house xv. 174 Mrs Le Tor..dashed to the back of the café, to a region she seemed familiar with.
2007 J. Lake Mainspring vi. 153 Larger, dimmer glows were embedded in the darkest regions of the cleft behind them.
b. A space which is occupied by something or in which some phenomenon occurs.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > position or situation > [noun] > actually occupied
stead1246
sitec1400
station?1440
situation1542
residency1579
platform1589
region1664
1664 H. Power Exper. Philos. i. 35 Oyle (which floated on the Vineger in a distinct Region by it self).
1876 P. G. Tait Lect. Recent Adv. in Physical Sci. (ed. 2) xiii. 334 We indicate on the diagram the region within which our given quantity of water can exist partly as vapour and partly as liquid.
1888 Proc. Royal Soc. 44 5 If the collision region has any great thickness, the centre should appear dimmer than the portion near the edge.
1925 H. C. Booth tr. F. Auerbach Mod. Magnetics (U.K. ed.) i. 2 The region in which a force is operative we call a field.
1956 L. P. Hunter Handbk. Semiconductor Electronics iv. 29 The depletion region of the encircling PN junction becomes thick enough to ‘pinch off’ the channel through which the working current flows.
1972 McGraw-Hill Yearbk. Sci. & Technol. 1971 363/1 The γ region is the high-field ‘depletion drift region’ in which carrier transport is by drift.
1985 R. Muncaster A-level Physics (ed. 2) xxvii. 420 A beam of unpolarized light passes through a region which contains small particles.
2004 K. Nakamura & T. Harayama Quantum Chaos & Quantum Dots i. 7 The motion of carrier electrons is limited, resulting in the two-dimensional conducting region.
c. in the region of.
(a) In the vicinity of, near to.
ΚΠ
1775 W. Marshall Minutes Agric. 4 Sept. (1778) Instead of the superfluous moisture being checked by the sub-surface in the immediate region of the feeding fibres, it is suffered..to drain away beneath them.
1785 W. Marshall Minutes in Rural Econ. Midland Counties (1790) II. 346 The soil of the plantation is sufficiently cool and moist for the purposes of vegetation:..not only in the region of the roots, but below them.
1820 Times 14 Nov. 2/3 A similar zeal..appeared to have been enkindled in the region of Manchester-square.
1899 T. C. Allbutt Syst. Med. VII. 730 Ophthalmoscopic examination reveals a peculiar..appearance in the region of each yellow spot.
1937 S. W. Wooldridge & R. S. Morgan Physical Basis Geogr. v. 58 In the region of the epicentre..actual waves or swells occur.
2000 S. A. Harvey in A. Hastings et al. Oxf. Compan. Christian Thought 692/2 Syriac is a dialect of Aramaic originating in the region of Edessa, now the city of Urfa in south-eastern Turkey.
(b) Originally U.S. Modifying a numerical quantity: approximately. Cf. neighbourhood n. 2.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > approximate quantity or amount > approximately (an amount) [phrase]
plus minus1611
or soa1616
a matter of1645
there or (and) thereaboutsa1696
the matter of1829
somewhere about1846
in the neighbourhood of1847
in the region of1865
of the order of1903
give or take1958
not unadjacent to1966
1865 T. P. Kettell Hist. Great Rebellion xlix. 510 Our loss, principally confined to Ayres's and Bartlett's Brigades, was in the region of one thousand men.
1889 W. H. Herndon & J. W. Weik Herndon's Lincoln I. ii. 38 He weighed in the region of a hundred and sixty pounds.
1938 Times 14 Feb. 20/1 Losses incurred through death and culling are commonly in the region of 30 per cent.
1966 ‘A. Hall’ 9th Directive x. 97 The breech-pressure is in the region of 20 tons p.s.i.
1972 Country Life 5 Oct. (Suppl.) 7/2 Delightful house... Offers in the region of £40,000.
1990 A. S. Byatt Possession xviii. 325 Mr Byng says he believes there is already an offer in the region of six large figures.
7.
a. Chiefly with of. A notional place in which the mind, spirit, etc., is situated; a part or area of the human psyche, esp. one relating to a particular (mental) faculty. Frequently in plural.
ΚΠ
1634 tr. S. Luzvic & E. Binet Devout Hart 64 Now bring that both of thine into the regions of the memory.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost ix. 1126 Thir inward State of Mind, calme Region once And full of Peace, now tost and turbulent. View more context for this quotation
1701 W. Anstruther Ess. ii. 75 If we enlarge our thoughts and prescind from privat Circumstances,..we shall find a light breaking in upon the dark Region of our Mind.
1749 T. Gibbons Elegiac Poem 3 Watts, in the ample Regions of thy Soul Innumerable Stores of Science lay.
1862 S. Davidson Introd. Old Test. I. 292 The feelings of the human mind which prompted them at first belonged to the high region of consciousness which is akin to the divine.
1884 Jrnl. Mental Sci. 19 510 We may, I think, be sure that some such region exists, that there is a mind's ear as well as the mind's eye.
1955 P. Heron Changing Forms Art 99 Picasso's genius lies not so much in his having the freedom of remote regions of mind and spirit as in his power to materialize his sense of what he finds there.
1997 GQ Sept. 78/1 The songs here are nearly all open letters posted from the darker regions of the soul.
b. A non-material area conceived as characterized by or relating to a particular activity, branch of knowledge, etc.; the realm or sphere of something.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > existence > materiality > immateriality > [noun] > immaterial or incorporeal thing > realm or kingdom > sphere or domain of
landc825
kingdomc1390
universe1607
regiona1661
realma1771
a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) i. 48 Seeing the whole mistery of Heraldry, dwells more in the region of fansie, than judgment.
1699 R. Bentley Diss. Epist. Phalaris (new ed.) 100 Our Examiner can give you a view of it in the Region of Possibilities.
1751 S. Johnson Rambler No. 83. ⁋2 Barbarians, by whom every region of science is equally laid waste.
1791 T. Paine Rights of Man (1985) ii. v A subject that embraces with equatorial magnitude the whole region of humanity.
1822 Times 4 Apr. 3/3 This is carrying admiration a little into the region of the ridiculous.
1858 A. Cayley in Math. Papers (1889) II. 592 We are then in the region of pure descriptive geometry.
1875 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) IV. 234 He has followed philosophy into the region of mythology.
1904 H. James Golden Bowl I. xxiii. 387 What was between them..had entered, as it were, without more words, the region of the understood.
1942 R. A. Knox In Soft Garments xv. 119 The old dispute between Cisalpines and Ultramontanes..has passed into the region of forgotten controversies.
1991 World Press Rev. Oct. 57/2 The ancient nakshi kanthas, or pictorial quilts, transcended the realm of craft and needlework into the region of folk art.
8. Governance, rule. Obsolete.In quot. c14751: planetary influence.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > sole rule > [noun] > rule or reign
reigna1393
region?a1400
renkea1450
sceptredom1599
rulership1706
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) (1996) i. 2128 Þorgh slauhtere & treson had Membrice þe region.
c1475 ( Surg. Treat. in MS Wellcome 564 f. 48v (MED) It schal be tretid..of þe cours & of þe regioun of þe vij planetis.
c1475 (?c1400) Apol. Lollard Doctr. (1842) 86 (MED) Ymagis..reyse not a king to regioun; þey schal not ȝeue reyn to men.
1543 ( Chron. J. Hardyng (1812) 314 (MED) He prayed the lordes at parlyament His sonne to admytte vnto the regyon, Syth he vnable was to the regyment.
Compounds
General attributive and objective, as region boundary, region cloud, region kite, region-planning, region planting, region whisper.
ΚΠ
1603 W. Shakespeare Hamlet ii. ii. 581 I should a fatted all the region kites With this slaues offell.
1609 W. Shakespeare Sonnets xxxiii. sig. C3v The region cloude hath mask'd him from me now. View more context for this quotation
1798 A. Murphy Arminius iv. i. 53 Their mangled bodies in one purple heap Cov'ring the plain, to feed the region kites.
1820 J. Keats Hyperion: a Fragm. i, in Lamia & Other Poems 165 Ere half this region-whisper had come down, Hyperion arose.
1831 On Planting (Libr. Useful Knowl.) iii. 44 The forest trees to be planted should be selected according to the above principles. In practice this may be termed region planting.
1921 G. D. H. Cole Future of Local Govt. ii. 14 What is really needed is plainly not mere town-planning, but region-planning.
2004 B. Fingleton in A. Getis et al. Spatial Econometrics & Spatial Statistics i. ii. 14 The discussion so far has highlighted how technical progress rates might differ between regions due to spillovers across region boundaries.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2009; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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