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lo·cal (lōkəl)
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adj.
1.
a. Of, relating to, or characteristic of a particular place: a local custom; the local slang.
b. Of or relating to a city, town, or district rather than a larger area: state and local government.
2. Not broad or general; not widespread: local outbreaks of flu.
3. Of or affecting a specific part of the body: a local infection.
4. Making all possible or scheduled stops on a route; not express: a local train.
n.
1. A public conveyance that makes several intermediate stops before the final destination is reached: changed trains to a local.
2. A local chapter or branch of an organization, especially of a labor union.
3. A local anesthetic.
4. Informal A person from a particular locality.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin locālis, from Latin locus, place.]

local·ly adv.
local·ness n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.