city-state

noun

ˈsi-tē-ˌstāt How to pronounce city-state (audio)
 also  -ˈstāt
: an autonomous state consisting of a city and surrounding territory

Examples of city-state in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Instead, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was grilled on the summit's sidelines about a lucrative and exclusive deal his city-state struck with Swift that prevents the singer from taking her Eras Tour to any other stop in Southeast Asia. Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 6 Mar. 2024 The history of the Florentine Renaissance can also be told in wars—a continual melee of rival families and city-states—and in the books that were used both to support and to undermine civic freedoms. Claudia Roth Pierpont, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024 Other paintings and etchings of the Mediterranean city-state indicate its lagoon froze over at least twice more in the 18th century, in 1789 and 1791. Tim Brinkhof, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Jan. 2024 Singapore Plenty of foreign nationals are singing Singapore’s praises: In 2022, this sophisticated city-state ranked third on InterNations’ Expat Essentials Index. Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 15 Jan. 2024 The verdict carried a rare Vatican prison sentence in a city-state with only three jail cells. Stefano Pitrelli, Washington Post, 23 Jan. 2024 Mesopotamia by the third millennium B.C.E. was a hodgepodge of city-states, including Uruk, Ur, Kish, and Akkad. Rebecca Boyle, The Atlantic, 3 Jan. 2024 Madison’s theory of an extended republic was that self-government would work better in a large, diverse nation than in a small city-state (the locus of most prior republics) because no single faction would predominate. Daniel Foster, National Review, 30 Nov. 2023 Those efforts include the futuristic city-state Neom, which Prince Mohammed hopes will one day feature flying cars, robot dinosaurs and a giant artificial moon. Chelsey Dulaney, WSJ, 9 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'city-state.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1840, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of city-state was in 1840

Dictionary Entries Near city-state

Cite this Entry

“City-state.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/city-state. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

city-state

noun
ˈsit-ē-ˈstāt,
-ˌstāt
: a self-governing state consisting of a city and surrounding territory

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