public sector

noun

Any government and all entities that are controlled or funded by it.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounpublic sector (plural public sectors)

plural public sectors · alternative public-sector

  1. Any government and all entities that are controlled or funded by it.

    Worth said: "We have distribution companies wanting to decarbonise. We have freight hauliers wanting to invest in electric locomotives. All we need to make that happen is the public sector's contribution. […]"

    2023 March 22, Paul Clifton, “CILT report urges £50m infill electrification schemes”, in RAIL, number 979, page 9
    1 more example

    It is time the international community faced the reality: we have an unmanageable, unfair, distortionary global tax regime. […] It is the starving of the public sector which has been pivotal in America no longer being the land of opportunity – with a child's life prospects more dependent on the income and education of its parents than in other advanced countries.

    2013 June 7, Joseph Stiglitz, “Globalisation is about taxes too”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 26, page 19
adjectivepublic sector (not comparable)

alternative public-sector

  1. not comparableOf or relating to a public sector.

Origin

public + sector

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 公共部門 /公共部门
  • 公共部門 /公共部门 (gōnggòng bùmén)government and entities
Finnish julkinen sektori, julkissektori
  • julkinen sektorigovernment and entities
  • julkissektorigovernment and entities
French secteur public
  • secteur publicgovernment and entities
German öffentliche Hand, öffentlicher Sektor
  • öffentliche Handgovernment and entities
  • öffentlicher Sektorgovernment and entities
Greek δημόσιος τομέας
  • δημόσιος τομέας (dimósios toméas)government and entities
Hungarian közszféra, állami szektor
  • közszféragovernment and entities
  • állami szektorgovernment and entities
Indonesian sektor publik
  • sektor publikgovernment and entities
Japanese 公共セクター
  • 公共セクター (kōkyō-sekutā)government and entities
Malay sektor awam
  • sektor awamgovernment and entities
Māori rāngai tūmatanui, rāngai kāwanatanga
  • rāngai tūmatanuigovernment and entities
  • rāngai kāwanatangagovernment and entities
Portuguese setor público
  • setor públicogovernment and entities
Russian госуда́рственный се́ктор, госсе́ктор
  • госуда́рственный се́ктор (gosudárstvennyj séktor)government and entities
  • госсе́ктор (gosséktor)government and entities
Scottish Gaelic roinn phoblach
  • roinn phoblachgovernment and entities
Spanish sector público
  • sector públicogovernment and entities
Swahili sekta ya umma
  • sekta ya ummagovernment and entities
Swedish offentlig sektor
  • offentlig sektorgovernment and entities
Cite this entry
APA

public sector. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/public%20sector

MLA

“public sector.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/public%20sector. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “public sector,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/public%20sector.

Source: public sector on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.