Etymologically
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hometown

Etymology and origin of the English word hometown

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
1851
Ultimate origins
English (home)Proto-Celtic (*dūnom)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English town
English hometown

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈhoʊmˌtaʊn/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is a compound, from English home + town.[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The town of one's birth or residence: 1851 in Merriam-Webster, 1879 in Etymonline,[4][2] and 1910–15, as an Americanism, in Random House.[3]

Semantic evolution

It is often used before another noun, as in hometown team.[5]

Timeline

  • 1851 – hometown.[4]
  • 1879 – home-town.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The town or city of one's birth, upbringing or main residence.

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ Gove, Philip Babcock, ed. (1961), Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam
Cite this entry

“Hometown.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/hometown. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·