town hall

noun

1
: a public building used for town-government offices and meetings
2
: an event at which a public official or political candidate addresses an audience by answering questions posed by individual members
Town halls have lost some of their spontaneity. The 80 or so undecided voters chosen for Tuesday's event must submit their questions in advance and moderator Candy Crowley of CNN will decide which people to call on.Connie Cass

Examples of town hall in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Levitt’s bargain worked because a town hall full of veterans forced it to. Jonathan Tower, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026 Those words probably would poll well and make salable talking points in local town halls. Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2026 Now, executive social media operates as an informal internal town hall. Rachel Ventresca, Fortune, 5 July 2026 Dua Lipa and Callum Turner recently got married at a town hall in London and then hosted a larger ceremony, a few days later, at a villa in Palermo. Tyler Foggatt, New Yorker, 4 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for town hall

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of town hall was in the 15th century

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Cite this Entry

“Town hall.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/town%20hall. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Kids Definition

town hall

noun
: a public building used for offices and meetings of town government
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