Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounAn area located outside of towns and cities; an area that is not urban or suburban; a rural area.
nounSuch part of a larger area.
Sentence Examples
More roads were made, and the countryside was divided into lots.
I never see this photo without being reminded of my happy days in the countryside.
The surrounding countryside is windswept and rocky.
CEFR Practice Quiz
Every weekend, they escaped the noisy city to hike the peaceful ____ together.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
More roads were made, and the ____ was divided into lots.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *ḱe?
Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm
Proto-Italic *kom
Proto-Italic *kom-
Proto-Indo-European *-teros
Proto-Italic *-teros
Proto-Italic *komterosder.
Proto-Italic *komterād
Latin contrā
Proto-Indo-European *-h₂
Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂
Proto-Indo-European *-tós
Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂tos
Proto-Italic *-ātos
Latin -ātus
Latin -āta
Vulgar Latin *(terra) contrāta
Old French contreebor.
Middle English contre
English country
Proto-Indo-European *seh₁-der.
Proto-Germanic *sīdaz
Proto-Germanic *sīdǭ
Old English sīde
Middle English side
English side
English -side
English countryside
From country + -side.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"From November 28 to December 8, 1958, the CCP Central Committee held its sixth plenum in Wuhan, Hopei^([sic – meaning Hupei]), and at the end of the session it issued a revealing resolution that declared there had been some misconception about the system and that party committees throughout the countryside should make full use of the five months from December 1958 to April 1959 to tidy up the communes."
— 1968, Lucian W. Pye, “The Political Process in Action: The Communes”, in The Spirit of Chinese Politics: A Psychocultural Study of the Authority Crisis in Political Development, M.I.T. Press, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 203:
"When rewilding plans were first revealed, critics of Scotland’s concentrated land ownership – half of the Scottish countryside is owned by around 450 people – expressed fears that Glenfeshie might become a reservation for the rich, but these have been partially allayed by letting ordinary hikers walk across the glens for free."
— 2020 February 25, Christopher de Bellaigue, “The end of farming?”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 06 Jan 2026: