A province is a region or territory within a country, similar to a state in the United States. Canada is divided into provinces like Ontario and British Columbia. In ancient Rome, provinces were territories the empire controlled outside Italy itself, like Gaul (modern-day France) or Egypt.

The word can also mean an area of knowledge, responsibility, or expertise. A scientist might say that questions about the human mind fall within the province of psychology. When your teacher says classroom discipline is her province, she means it's her area of authority and responsibility. If your older brother declares that the television remote is his province, he's (jokingly) claiming control over what gets watched.

Sometimes people use the phrase beyond my province to mean something falls outside their area of expertise or responsibility: “I can help you with your math homework, but chemistry is beyond my province.”

In older usage, the provinces meant areas outside a country's main city or capital, sometimes with the suggestion that these places were less sophisticated or important. This meaning carries a hint of snobbery and isn't used much today. The key meaning remains: a province is a distinct region within a larger whole, whether that's a physical territory or an area of knowledge or responsibility.