public utility

SEE SYNONYMS FOR public utility ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a business enterprise, as a public-service corporation, performing an essential public service and regulated by the federal, state, or local government. Compare utility(def 3).
Usually public utilities. stocks or bonds of public-utility companies, excluding railroads.

Origin of public utility

First recorded in 1900–05

OTHER WORDS FROM public utility

pub·lic-u·til·i·ty, adjective

Words nearby public utility

public speaking, public spending, public statute, public television, public transport, public utility, public works, public works administration, public-access television, public-address system, public-interest group

Example sentences from the Web for public utility

British Dictionary definitions for public utility

public utility

noun

an enterprise concerned with the provision to the public of essentials, such as electricity or water Also called (US): public-service corporation

Cultural definitions for public utility

public utility

A private company supplying water, gas, electricity, telephone service, or the like, which is granted a monopoly by the government and then regulated by the government.