cos·mo·pol·i·tan
ˌkäz-mə-ˈpä-lə-tən 
1
: having wide international sophistication : worldly
Greater cultural diversity has led to a more cosmopolitan attitude among the town's younger generations.
2
: composed of persons, constituents, or elements from all or many parts of the world
a city with a cosmopolitan population
3
: having worldwide rather than limited or provincial scope or bearing
… his cosmopolitan benevolence, impartially extended to all races and to all creeds.—
Thomas Babington Macaulay
Thomas Babington Macaulay4
: found in most parts of the world and under varied ecological conditions
a cosmopolitan herb
1
: cosmopolite
Many cosmopolitans around the world now also share the English language …—Robert J. Shiller
Robert J. Shiller2
or less commonly cosmo
: a cocktail made of vodka, orange-flavored liqueur, lime juice, and cranberry juice
Did you know?
Defining Cosmopolitan (Not the Drink)
Since cosmopolitan includes the root polit-, from the Greek word for "citizen", someone who is cosmopolitan is a "citizen of the world". She may be able to read the morning paper in Rio de Janeiro, attend a lecture in Madrid, and assist at a refugee camp in Uganda with equal ease—and maybe all in the same week. And a city or a country that is cosmopolitan has aspects and elements that come from various countries.
Examples of cosmopolitan in a Sentence
Adjective
Greater cultural diversity has led to a more cosmopolitan attitude among the town's younger generations.
the cosmopolitan taste of the store's customers
It's one of the country's more cosmopolitan cities.
Noun
as someone who had lived in Paris for a year as an exchange student, she seemed very much the cosmopolitan to her old classmates
Recent Examples on the Web
Thania Garcia, Variety, 7 Aug. 2025
In 2025, the ninth festival edition celebrated the cosmopolitan spirit of Mexico City with an exceptional lineup of chefs joining the resort’s host chefs, Pablo Hildebrando and Mario Rodríguez.
—Claudia Alarcón, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2025
Jessi Roti, Bon Appetit Magazine, 19 May 2025
The season’s final scene was with Seema (Choudhury) and Carrie drinking cosmopolitans on the beach in Greece.
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 15 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cosmopolitan
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Adjective
The keyboardist and singer-songwriter began his career in bossa nova, but quickly took flight and developed a deeply personal, cosmopolitan musical language of his own.
—Thania Garcia, Variety, 7 Aug. 2025
In 2025, the ninth festival edition celebrated the cosmopolitan spirit of Mexico City with an exceptional lineup of chefs joining the resort’s host chefs, Pablo Hildebrando and Mario Rodríguez.
—Claudia Alarcón, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2025
Noun
Is whiskey a man’s spirit, while women are only allowed to sip cosmopolitans?
—Jessi Roti, Bon Appetit Magazine, 19 May 2025
The season’s final scene was with Seema (Choudhury) and Carrie drinking cosmopolitans on the beach in Greece.
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 15 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cosmopolitan
Cite this Entry
“Cosmopolitan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cosmopolitan. Accessed 11 Aug. 2025.
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