Acton

From Old English āc (“oak”) + tūn (“farm, town, homestead”); compare the doublet Aughton.

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈæktən/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Acton (countable and uncountable, plural Actons)

1. (uncountable) Any of a few places in England:
   1. A village in Burland and Acton parish, Cheshire East district, Cheshire (OS grid ref SJ6353).
   2. A hamlet in Langton Matravers parish, Purbeck district, Dorset (OS grid ref SY9878).
   3. A town and suburb in the borough of Ealing, Greater London (OS grid ref TQ2080).
   4. A hamlet in Allendale parish, south-west Northumberland (OS grid ref NY8351).
   5. A village in Lydbury North parish, Shropshire (OS grid ref SO3184).
   6. A hamlet in Whitmore parish, Newcastle-under-Lyme borough, Staffordshire (OS grid ref SJ8241).
   7. A village and civil parish in Babergh district, Suffolk (OS grid ref TL8944). ^[1]
   8. A locality in Ombersley parish, Wychavon district, Worcestershire (OS grid ref SO8467). ^[2]
2. A suburb and community in Wrexham borough county borough, Wales (OS grid ref SJ3451). ^[3]
3. A village and townland in County Armagh, Northern Ireland
4. A place in Canada:
   1. A community in the town of Halton Hills, Regional Municipality of Halton, Ontario.
   2. A regional county municipality in the Montérégie region, Quebec.
5. (uncountable) Any of a few places in the United States:
   1. An unincorporated community in Shelby County, Alabama.
   2. A census-designated place in Los Angeles County, California.
      • 2025 August 14, Grace Toohey and Clara Harter, “Hawk fire grows to 400 acres in Acton as crews begin to get a handle on King fire near Gorman”, in Los Angeles Times‎^[1], archived from the original on 18 August 2025:

        Fire crews battled two brush fires in northern Los Angeles County on Thursday — the King fire, which ignited near Pyramid Lake in the early morning, and the Hawk fire, which erupted in Acton around 3 p.m., threatening structures and prompting evacuation orders.

   3. A ghost town in Polk County, Florida.
   4. An unincorporated community in Harris County, Georgia.
   5. An unincorporated community in Taylor County, Kentucky.
   6. A town in York County, Maine.
   7. A town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts.
   8. An unincorporated community in Meeker County, Minnesota.
   9. An unincorporated community in Yellowstone County, Montana.
   10. An unincorporated community in Salem County, New Jersey.
   11. An unincorporated community in McNairy County, Tennessee.
   12. An unincorporated community in Hood County, Texas.
6. (countable) A habitational surname from Old English.

• According to the 2010 United States Census, Acton is the 6874^th most common surname in the United States, belonging to 4892 individuals. Acton is most common among White (91.86%) individuals.

• Hanks, Patrick, editor (2003), “Acton”, in Dictionary of American Family Names, volume 1, New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 8.

• Canto, Caton, canto, octan

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

• IPA^(key): /ak.tɔ̃/
• Hyphenation: Ac‧ton
• Rhymes: -ɔ̃

Acton m

1. a regional county municipality of Montérégie, Quebec, Canada