Western has 11 different meanings across 3 categories:
Noun · Adjective · Proper Noun
a film about life in the western United States during the period of exploration and development
"The cowboy movie they are watching tonight is set against the backdrop of the dusty plains where cowboys first tamed the range."
a sandwich made from a western omelet
"After hitting the gym, I grabbed a quick western to refuel before heading home."
A film, or some other dramatic work, set in, the historic (c. 1850-1910) American West (west of the Mississippi river) focusing on conflict between whites and Indians, lawmen and outlaws, ranchers and farmers, or industry (railroads, mining) and agriculture.
"The user typed the query in all lowercase, so the search engine returned results for both "Western" and "western"."
Alternative letter-case form of western
In plain English: A western is a movie or book set in the American West during the time when cowboys and pioneers were exploring new lands.
"The western is my favorite type of movie."
relating to or characteristic of the western parts of the world or the West as opposed to the eastern or oriental parts
"the western world"
"western thought"
of or characteristic of regions of the United States west of the Mississippi River
"a Western ranch"
Of, facing, situated in, or related to the west.
"The western side of the city is known for its quiet hills and historic farms."
Of, situated in, or related to the West
In plain English: Western refers to something related to the part of the United States that lies west of the Mississippi River.
"The western part of the city is known for its large parks and quiet streets."
Usage: Use this adjective to describe anything located in or coming from the western part of a region, such as Western Europe or the American West. It is often paired with specific geographic names like "Western Australia" rather than standing alone without context.
A surname.
"My neighbor, Mr. Western, greeted me with a warm smile when I stopped by his house."
The word western comes directly from the Old English form westerne, which originally meant "of or toward the west." It entered Middle English unchanged and has been used in its current sense ever since.