# Town-city-village-country



## onarbaz

Hello everybody! 

I really don't know the difference between the two words above...Specifically, in this context: 
"Me gusta la ciudad con toda su vida en las calles, transportes para ir a cualquier parte, bibliotecas, cines, bares, restaurantes, teatros...pero cuando quiero relajarme, estar en contacto con la naturaleza y leer un libro, prefiero el campo".
How would you translate it? It's always city=town? It's always town =small village?

Thaank yooouu!


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## Masood

En términos generales en cuanto a superficie:
city>town>village


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## irisheyes0583

I'm a little confused about your question. If I don't answer it, could you please rephrase?

In the sentence you have, I would translate _ciudad_ as _city_ and _campo_ as _country_. With regards to the difference between a _city_, _town_, and _village_... well, there are population requirement for what makes a city and what makes a town. In the U.S., we don't normally use _village_.


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## onarbaz

OK, thanks Masood and Irisheyes, it seems more clear...
So, _city_ is bigger than _town_, and town is bigger than _village_; and related to my text, we could write this title for it: _"Differences between the city and the country",_is it?
In fact, the confusion started when I was living in Irland, in Mountmerrion (can we say a small town in Dublin?):when you wanted to get to Dublin, from Mountmerrion, people from there said: "We are going to town"...That's why my question: why didn't they say: "Let's go to the city"?, for example.
Thanks again, and correct me if necessary, please.


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## irisheyes0583

Well, Dublin is clearly a city *but* we often use the word _town_ because it's more intimate. When we feel a close relationship to a city (or at least when I do), we'll call it a _town_, not a _city_. For example, when I was younger, I used to live right outside of Philadelphia. I didn't go into Philly very often, so when I did, I always said I was "going into the city". As I grew older and started going into Philly more & more, my vocabulary changed and I started to ask if people wanted to go to town with me...

Again though, this may just be me.


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## onarbaz

Ok Irisheyes! That's was just what I needed! So, it's possible you use _town_, when you feel that the city is _yours_, do you? 
_Has dado en el clavo_!  (I'll tell you the last in English when I find the translation )

P.D.: Can you confirm that "do you?", above, is right? Thnx again!


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## Masood

En inglés británico decimos 'I'm going (in)to town' (siquiera si vives en una ciudad) que significa 'me voy al centro'. Inglés estadounidense es diferente.


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## Jellby

No sé de dónde la saqué, pero tengo la idea de que "city" se usa para ciudades con catedral y "town" para las que no la tienen... Quizá es sólo una idea teórica que en la práctica no se aplica, o a lo mejor es simplemente una idea falsa.

En cuanto a "campo", ¿no sería mejor traducirlo por "countryside"?


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## irisheyes0583

Jellby said:
			
		

> No sé de dónde la saqué, pero tengo la idea de que "city" se usa para ciudades con catedral y "town" para las que no la tienen... Quizá es sólo una idea teórica que en la práctica no se aplica, o a lo mejor es simplemente una idea falsa.
> 
> En cuanto a "campo", ¿no sería mejor traducirlo por "countryside"?



Para mi, una ciudad tiene nada que ver con un catedral... 

Y _countryside_, por lo menos en los EEUU, no se usa mucho en este contexto. Siempre diria "I'm going to the country this weekend."



			
				onarbaz said:
			
		

> P.D.: Can you confirm that "do you?", above, is right? Thnx again!



Seria, "So, you think it's possible to use _town_, when you feel that the city is _yours_, do you?

Y la respuesta es un definitivo _si_. 

"_Has dado en el clavo_" = You've hit the nail on the head.


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## ammon101

irisheyes0583 said:
			
		

> Well, Dublin is clearly a city *but* we often use the word _town_ because it's more intimate. When we feel a close relationship to a city (or at least when I do)


 
Me gusta tu punto de vista y asi es tambien en los EEUU.  Sin embargo, veo que ese sentido de llamar la ciudad "town" para comunicar una coneccion intima tiene sus limites.  Por ejemplo no puedo imaginar a alguien llamar a Los Angeles o a Ciudad Nueva York "town" en ningun sentido pues son GIGANTES.

*bien recibo correcciones, asi aprendo*


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## ammon101

Masood said:
			
		

> En inglés británico decimos 'I'm going (in)to town' (siquiera si vives en una ciudad) que significa 'me voy al centro'. Inglés estadounidense es diferente.


 
Tambien se una este sentido en los EEUU. Claro que hay diferencias obvias en la frequencia del uso. El ingles estadounidense prefiere "I'm going _downtown,_" esto tambien significa (mas especificamente ?) "me voy al centro."


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## onarbaz

Thanx for your translation Irisheyes: very useful! 



			
				irisheyes0583 said:
			
		

> Para mi, una ciudad tiene nada que ver con un catedral...
> 
> Y _countryside_, por lo menos en los EEUU, no se usa mucho en este contexto. Siempre diria "I'm going to the country this weekend."
> 
> 
> 
> Seria, "So, you think it's possible to use _town_, when you feel that the city is _yours_, do you?
> 
> Y la respuesta es un definitivo _si_.
> 
> "_Has dado en el clavo_" = You've hit the nail on the head.


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## onarbaz

Hey lads! 
Thanks to everybody, I'm catching a lot of good ideas:
*I coincide with Jellby: I also think I  relate _city_ to important and big cathidrals and buildings, maybe because a small town, is supposed to have small and cosy things...(I say it affectionally  ).
*I coincide with Irisheyes and Masood: I think you can use _town_, when you feel your city _yours_, and when you go to the _center_ of the city (phisically); but it's also true that I've never related, Los Angeles or New York related to a _town_.

P.D.: Please, could you tell me if "lads"="chicos" in Spanish, and if anything is not expressed right? Thnxxxss!


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## irisheyes0583

onarbaz said:
			
		

> Hey lads!
> Thanks to everybody, I'm catching a lot of good ideas:
> *I coincide with Jellby: I also think I  relate _city_ to important and big cathidrals and buildings, maybe because a small town, is supposed to have small and cosy things...(I say it affectionally  ).
> *I coincide with Irisheyes and Masood: I think you can use _town_, when you feel your city _yours_, and when you go to the _center_ of the city (phisically); but it's also true that I've never related, Los Angeles or New York related to a _town_.
> 
> P.D.: Please, could you tell me if "lads"="chicos" in Spanish, and if anything is not expressed right? Thnxxxss!



I coincide ==> I agree

Lads--> this is BE and I'm not sure how common it is... in AE, we say "Hey guys!"


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## onarbaz

Oh! I forgot it:
Thanks for the word: _downtown, _I think Rod Steward has a song called "Downtown train" that it likes me a lot!  I suppose, it should be related to a train that goes to the city center, or something like that, is it?


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## onarbaz

Thanks, I forgot the word "guy"...I could use it as well... 


			
				irisheyes0583 said:
			
		

> I coincide ==> I agree
> 
> Lads--> this is BE and I'm not sure how common it is... in AE, we say "Hey guys!"


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## aurilla

lads = boys
lassies = girls


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## onarbaz

Thanks Aurilla!


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## aurilla

Ur güelcom


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## Lagartija

Masood said:
			
		

> En inglés británico decimos 'I'm going (in)to town' (siquiera si vives en una ciudad) que significa 'me voy al centro'. Inglés estadounidense es diferente.


En Massachusetts, se dice lo mismo: "I'm going into town to buy a newspaper" significa 'me voy al centro'.  

Also, in Massachusetts there are certain rules of government that population centers designated as "cities" must adhere to that "towns" do not. Our "town" is on the borderline and there is a big discussion/debate going on about whether our form of government should be changed or not.
In New England, "village" usually refers to a cluster of houses, a nearby church, stone wall and cemetery. If you blink, you will miss it! "Quaint little New England village" is the phrase you hear a lot around here! A town will have a "Town Hall" for the government, post office and at least a dozen stores in a central location. The village _may_ have a post office, but it may be part of someone's house or be located in the General Store.

Oh... I forgot, it is necessary to have a "common"  in both a village and a town!  (A "common" is a large area of grass where in the old days everyone let their livestock graze.)


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## onarbaz

Very interesting Lagartija!  
I agree with you in the meaning of _village:_ is the same as _pueblo_, in Spain: cluster of houses and nearby a church, a town-hall, a cementry, a post office and a _common_ with animals...
The only difference is that in Spain, we generally use the word, _pueblo_, to define a lot of concepts: pueblo grande como una ciudad, pueblo pequeño, pueblecito,...I think we just have another word to define a _village_, smaller than _pueblo_: _villa._
This subject is endless!


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## Jellby

I'd say a village is more like an "aldea".


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## GMonkey

I'd like to make a small point about "town" as a figurative term... I live in New York City, and we often say "I love this town..." or especially "Let's go out for a night on the town..."  

"Going out for a night on the town" is very common, and in fact it would seem very odd for a New Yorker to say "Let's go out for a night on the city..."  I think that "town," as a figurative term, is definitely linked to feelings about the city, etc., regardless of size.  

As far as village goes, "village" in the United States definitely implies a sense of quaint community... Often the connotation is one of grassy hills, trees, cute little houses, etc.  If one saw a place of the exact same population, size, etc., but it was run-down/dirty, etc., we would not use the word village.


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## Lagartija

GMonkey said:
			
		

> As far as village goes, "village" in the United States definitely implies a sense of quaint community... Often the connotation is one of grassy hills, trees, cute little houses, etc. If one saw a place of the exact same population, size, etc., but it was run-down/dirty, etc., we would not use the word village.



Then what would you call it?  
We would still call it a village here.... but add a descriptive term like "decrepit old village", derelict village, run-down village.  Believe me, there are plenty that meet that description in the hills here!  They are places where there used to be textile mills (that was the major industry here in the last century).


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## irisheyes0583

Lagartija said:
			
		

> Then what would you call it?
> We would still call it a village here.... but add a descriptive term like "decrepit old village", derelict village, run-down village.  Believe me, there are plenty that meet that description in the hills here!  They are places where there used to be textile mills (that was the major industry here in the last century).



Some possibilities (and these do not necessarily represent what _I _would say and they would definitely be offensive to some people): shanty town, ghetto, slum, skid row, barrio, run-down town, the slums, or ghost town. They all have their own specific meanings, so it would really depend on what the town looked like!


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## Lagartija

irisheyes0583 said:
			
		

> Some possibilities (and these do not necessarily represent what _I _would say and they would definitely be offensive to some people): shanty town, ghetto, slum, skid row, barrio, run-down town, the slums, or ghost town. They all have their own specific meanings, so it would really depend on what the town looked like!



From the words in your list, one would most likely use "shanty town", "run-down town" or "ghost town" for something the size of a village.  To me, the other terms  seem to imply a bad part of a much larger city: ghetto, slum, skid row, and barrio.


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## irisheyes0583

Lagartija said:
			
		

> From the words in your list, one would most likely use "shanty town", "run-down town" or "ghost town" for something the size of a village. To me, the other terms seem to imply a bad part of a much larger city: ghetto, slum, skid row, and barrio.



Technically speaking, you're right, but even in my hometown (not a city), there were certain parts that we referred to as the "getto"...


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## charmedgirl

As for this topic, I found in the "Carol of the Bells, that it says "From every village town can you hear the sound..." Does anyone know if Village-town should be one word with a hyphen, or on the contrary it's two words with a comma?? And if it's just one word... What is it exactly, village-town? How would you translate that? THANKS!


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## Lagartija

charmedgirl said:


> As for this topic, I found in the "Carol of the Bells, that it says "From every village town can you hear the sound..." Does anyone know if Village-town should be one word with a hyphen, or on the contrary it's two words with a comma?? And if it's just one word... What is it exactly, village-town? How would you translate that? THANKS!



I would use a comma.  I think it is using artistic license and leaving out the "or" between village and town because it doesn't meet the rhythm requirements of the song!


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## Erasmoose06

Technically, the difference between a town, a city, and a village is based on their form of government. The specifics are rather long and extensive and if you really wish to learn the differences, I suggest searching a site such as wikipedia.com . The terms are often used interchangeably, but generally the order, in reference to size, is City > Town > Village. 

A country, on the other hand, is an autonomous, sovereign state. It consists of many villages/towns/cities and has an independent government from its neighboring states. 

Of course, in the United States, we refer to territories such as New York, California, or Illinois as "states". The reason leads back to our "thirteen original colonies" which unified under the United States Constitution to form the country that is now called the United States of America.


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## sneaksleep

Don't forget the word *hamlet*, which refers to a very very very small village. Really just a few houses and maybe a crossroads. Just in case people weren't confused enough already.


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## Mirlo

Well after all say and done I will say that for your context you should use "City" . To me "town" is mostly use when:
1) Talking about going to the center of the city=city town
2) Most country people call their city "my town"
and last because of the reference in your context about restaurants,and theathers this things only exists in big cities.


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## Bagheera70

irisheyes0583 said:


> I'm a little confused about your question. If I don't answer it, could you please rephrase?
> 
> In the sentence you have, I would translate _ciudad_ as _city_ and _campo_ as _country_. With regards to the difference between a _city_, _town_, and _village_... well, there are population requirement for what makes a city and what makes a town. In the U.S., we don't normally use _village_.



Yeah, that's true. But the word _'village'_ should be translated into Spanish as _'aldea'_, and it's rarely used in the US. I happen to live now in an peaceful area called The Village of El Portal, inside a city called Miami Shores in Miami, FL. Notice that this is not a condo; it's a small town inside a small city. Also when mailing, this village is known by the US Postal Services as 'El Portal', with zipcode 33138.

This was new and weird for me, because I've only known cities inside Miami like North Miami, Miami Gardens, Miami Beach, Aventura, Hialeah, etc... all of them are called 'cities', and Downtown Miami is just Downtown.


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## worldspeak

I agree with the use of aldea for "village", however, although "village" may be rarely used in some parts of the U.S., it's common in other parts (e.g. in the Midwest).  Also "village" can even refer to a part of a city (e.g. Greenwich Village in New York City).  Also, is it possible that the original question was referring to a "county" not a "country"?


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