util·i·ty
yü-ˈti-lə-tē 
plural utilities
1
: fitness for some purpose or worth to some end
2
: something useful or designed for use
3
a
b(1)
: a service (such as light, power, or water) provided by a public utility
(2)
: equipment or a piece of equipment to provide such service or a comparable service
4
: a program or routine designed to perform or facilitate especially routine operations (such as copying files or editing text) on a computer
1
: capable of serving as a substitute in various roles or positions
a utility infielder
2
a
: kept to provide a useful product or service rather than for show or as a pet
utility livestock
a utility dog
b
: being of a usable but inferior grade
utility beef
3
: serving primarily for utility rather than beauty : utilitarian
4
: designed or adapted for general use
a utility tool
5
: of or relating to a utility
a utility company
Examples of utility in a Sentence
Noun
a plan without much practical utility
Notify the utility if there's an outage.
Recent Examples on the Web
Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 7 Feb. 2026
Most of that money went to producing and airing ads in which Steyer touts his wins supporting various ballot measures and pledges to break up utility monopolies to lower costs.
—Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2026
C. Trent Rosecrans, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026
The gas company suits accuse Gillett, among other things, of an anti-utility bias.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 16 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for utility
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Noun
Fernandez’s individual trajectory at Chelsea since has validated Lampard’s assessment and then some, both in terms of his quality and his utility.
—Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 7 Feb. 2026
Most of that money went to producing and airing ads in which Steyer touts his wins supporting various ballot measures and pledges to break up utility monopolies to lower costs.
—Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
Even before agreeing to the deal with Suárez, the Reds had looked at using Steer, who was a Gold Glove finalist in his first full season at first base in 2025, as a super-utility player.
—C. Trent Rosecrans, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026
The gas company suits accuse Gillett, among other things, of an anti-utility bias.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 16 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for utility
Cite this Entry
“Utility.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/utility. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
utility
1 of 2 noun
util·i·ty
yü-ˈtil-ət-ē
plural utilities
1
: the quality or state of being useful : usefulness
2
: something useful or designed for use
3
a
b
: a public service (as power or water) provided by a public utility
4
: a program designed to perform or aid in especially routine actions (as copying files or editing text) on a computer
utility
2 of 2 adjective1
: capable of serving as a substitute in various roles or positions
utility infielder
2
: being of a usable but poor quality
utility beef
3
: serving chiefly for usefulness rather than beauty : utilitarian
4
: designed for general use
utility bag
Legal Definition
utility
noun
util·i·ty
plural utilities
1
: fitness for some purpose or worth to some end
2
a
b
: a service or commodity provided by a public utility
paid for rent and utilities
also
: equipment or material used in providing such a service or commodity
an easement limited to purposes of travel which does not include the right to install utilities —Ware v. Public Serv. Co., 412 A.2d 84 (1980)
Ware v. Public Serv. Co., 412 A.2d 84 (1980) 3
plural
: stocks or bonds of utility companies
utilities performed poorly
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