Country: A Nation, and Everywhere That Is Not a Town
A country is a nation with its own government. The same word means rural land, which is why the country and a country mean quite different things.
Country carries two meanings that the article separates. *A country* is a nation. *The country* is everywhere that is not the town. English relies entirely on that small word to tell them apart, and usually manages.
- A nation. *He has visited forty countries.*
- Rural areas. *They moved to the country.*
- A region of a particular kind. *This is good walking country.*
- A style of music. *Country and western.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | country | A small country. |
| Plural | countries | Neighbouring countries. |
| Noun | countryside | Open countryside. |
| Person | countryman | A fellow countryman. |
| Adjective | cross-country | A cross-country race. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The country voted to change the law.The nation and its people.
- We spent the weekend in the country.Rural areas — the article does the work.
- This is prime cycling country.Terrain suited to something.
Country, nation and state
- Country — a territory, and the everyday word
- Nation — a people sharing identity, which may cross borders
- State — the political and legal apparatus of government
- Nation state — where the three coincide, which is rarer than assumed
- Scotland is a country and a nation but not a sovereign state
From Old French *contree*, from Latin *contrata terra*, land lying opposite — the land spread out before you. The rural sense is therefore the older one, and the political sense grew from it.
Country or countryside?
Countryside always means rural land and never a nation, so it removes the ambiguity when you need to.
How many countries are there?
There is no single answer. The United Nations has 193 member states, and several territories are recognised by some countries but not others.