a royal, parliamentary, and municipal burgh of Scotland, in Ross-shire, on the south shore of the Dornoch Firth, 24 miles N.N.E. of Inverness, and 88 N.W. of Aberdeen. It stands on a gravelly terrace, elevated a considerable height above the sea, and is irregularly laid out, but contains many good houses. Near the centre of the town stands an ancient tower with a spire, connected with the handsome new court-house and county-buildings. The most interesting building in Tain is the old church of St Duthus, now in a very neglected and ruinous condition, but still a beautiful specimen of Gothic architecture. The modern parish church is a huge square building, with a tower at each corner. The Free Church and the United Presbyterians have places of worship in Tain, and there are also an academy and several other schools, a mechanics' institute, a large poor-house in the Elizabethan style, a prison, &c. Besides several mills, the town contains an iron-foundry and a brewery. There is no harbour here, but a considerable retail trade is carried on. The burgh is governed by a provost and fifteen councillors; and it unites with Wick, Dingwall, Cromarty, Dornoch, and Kirkwall in returning a member to Parliament. Pop. of the parliamentary burgh, 2049; of the town, 2588.