city

noun

ˈsi-tē 

plural cities

often attributive

1

a

: an inhabited place of greater size, population, or importance than a town or village

We spent the weekend in the city.

b

: an incorporated British town usually of major size or importance having the status of an episcopal see

c capitalized

(1)

: the financial district of London

(2)

: the influential financial interests of the British economy

d

: a usually large or important municipality in the U.S. governed under a charter granted by the state

e

: an incorporated municipal unit of the highest class in Canada

2

: city-state

3

: the people of a city

The city rebelled against the oppressive government.

4

slang : a thing, event, or situation that is strongly characterized by a specified quintessential feature or quality

The movie was shoot-out city.

Getting lost in the maze was panic city.

Synonyms

• town
• metropolis
• municipality

Examples of city in a Sentence

major cities like London, Tokyo, and Rome

The city is working to make the streets safer.

a lawsuit against the city

Recent Examples on the Web

Goalkeeper Joan Garcia has joined from city rivals Espanyol for his €25million ($28.6m; £21.1m) release clause, while Athletic Club’s Nico Williams has agreed verbal terms with Barca, who do not view his €60m clause as an obstacle. —Pol Ballús, New York Times, 27 June 2025

The Democratic nominee will begin the general election as the favorite in the overwhelmingly Democratic city. —Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 26 June 2025

A number of other celebrities are invited to the wedding festivities, which remain a secret but are expected to kick off on Thursday and end Saturday in the picturesque Italian city. —Christina Dugan Ramirez, FOXNews.com, 26 June 2025

Some cities in Maryland and Vermont have also moved to allowing noncitizens to vote in local elections, but the measures have met with legal challenges. —Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English citie large or small town, from Anglo-French cité, from Medieval Latin civitat-, civitas, from Latin, citizenship, state, city of Rome, from civis citizen — more at hind

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing city

• anti-city
• big-city
• central city
• city centre
• city clerk
• city council
• city desk
• city editor
• city father
• city hall
• city manager
• city planning
• city room
• city slicker
• city-state
• core city
• edge city
• fat city
• free city
• garden city
• holy city
• independent city
• inner city
• inter-city
• open city
• sister city
• tent city
• the big city
• the city

Rhymes for city

• bitty
• ditty
• gritty
• kitty
• nitty
• pity
• pretty
• witty
• atomicity
• catholicity
• ellipticity
• historicity

Kids Definition

city

noun

ˈsit-ē 

plural cities

1

: a place in which people live that is larger or more important than a town

2

: the people of a city

Etymology

Middle English citie "large or small town," from early French cité (same meaning), derived from Latin civitas "state of being a resident of a town, citizenship," from civis "citizen" — related to citizen, civil