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The concept of the borough has been used repeatedly ( and often differently ) throughout the English-speaking world.

Often, a borough is a single town with its own local government.

However, in some cities it is a subdivision of the city ( for example, London, New York City, Montreal, and Tokyo ).

In such cases, the borough will normally have either limited powers delegated to it by the city's local government, or no powers at all.

At certain times, London has had no overall city government and boroughs were the main unit of local government for Londoners ; in Tokyo, they are known as wards or cities, and have city status, but these still form parts of a larger municipal government which has merged with that of the prefecture.

In other places, such as Alaska, borough designates a whole region ; Alaska's largest borough, the North Slope Borough, is comparable in area to the entire United Kingdom.

In Australia, borough can designate a town and its surrounding area, such as the Borough of Queenscliffe.