Meanings
nounpanchayat (plural panchayats)
plural panchayats
- IndiaSouth AsiaA village council or local government.First known use late 19th C.
“You're in the panchayat,” she said. “So couldn't you make that official?”
2005, Salman Rushdie, Shalimar the Clown, Vintage, published 2006, page 2331 more example
He called a panchayat of the village and asked them if they objected to having a mill go up next to their village.
2004, Khushwant Singh, Burial at Sea, Penguin, published 2014, page 58 - NepalhistoricalAn advisory council with limited powers under the absolute monarchy of 1961 to 1990.
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Hindiपंचायत“panchayat (originally a council of five)”
- Englishpanchayat
Borrowed from Hindi पंचायत (pañcāyat, “panchayat (originally a council of five)”).
More words from Hindi
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bengali পঞ্চায়েত
- পঞ্চায়েত (poncaẏet)Translations
Hindi पंचायत
- पंचायत (pañcāyat)Translations
Punjabi ਪੰਚਾਇਤ
- ਪੰਚਾਇਤ (pañcāita)Translations
Tamil பஞ்சாயத்து, ஊராட்சி
- பஞ்சாயத்து (pañcāyattu)Translations
- ஊராட்சி (ūrāṭci)Translations
Cite this entry
APA
panchayat. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/panchayat
MLA
“panchayat.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/panchayat. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “panchayat,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/panchayat.
Source: panchayat on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.