as in republics
a state that has its own government and consists of a city and the area around it
the city-states of ancient Greece
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of city-states
Those myths were conveyed through performance, sung in the great halls of the elite, recited at festivals all across the ancient world, staged at the theatre to large audiences, and displayed on wall paintings, mosaics, vases, and sculptures that adorned both sacred sanctuaries and city-states.
—
Literary Hub, 27 Feb. 2026
With crops failing and fears of starvation rising, some wealthy Italian city-states like Florence and Venice imported grain from elsewhere in the world.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 4 Dec. 2025
An ensuing grain shortage threatened to spark a famine or civil unrest, so Italian city-states, such as Venice and Genoa, resorted to emergency imports from the Black Sea region, which helped keep the population fed.
—Jacopo Prisco, CNN Money, 4 Dec. 2025
Consequently, Persia abandoned its westward expansion, while various Greek city-states formed a tenuous alliance that lasted nearly 50 years.
—Debbie Felton, The Conversation, 8 Aug. 2025
Literary Hub, 27 Feb. 2026
With crops failing and fears of starvation rising, some wealthy Italian city-states like Florence and Venice imported grain from elsewhere in the world.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 4 Dec. 2025
An ensuing grain shortage threatened to spark a famine or civil unrest, so Italian city-states, such as Venice and Genoa, resorted to emergency imports from the Black Sea region, which helped keep the population fed.
—Jacopo Prisco, CNN Money, 4 Dec. 2025
Consequently, Persia abandoned its westward expansion, while various Greek city-states formed a tenuous alliance that lasted nearly 50 years.
—Debbie Felton, The Conversation, 8 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for city-states
Noun
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Cliffs of Moher, Ireland The rugged coastline of County Clare served as a dramatic setting in Harry Potter, and the wider Wild Atlantic Way has doubled as everything from fantasy kingdoms to period dramas.—
Lauren Schuster,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
23 Mar. 2026
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That’s County Clare’s rugged coastline, and the wider Wild Atlantic Way has doubled as everything from fantasy kingdoms to period dramas.—
Lauren Schuster,
Miami Herald,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The Philippines declared a national emergency as fuel shortages caused by the war in Iran threatened its economic stability, one of a number of Asian nations scrambling to address a looming lack of energy.—
Jeronimo Gonzalez,
semafor.com,
25 Mar. 2026
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Although Nigeria was temporarily suspended from the Commonwealth group of nations, the oil industry continued its operations, and federal governments continued to misappropriate their share of the revenues and violently suppress protests.—
Noo Saro-Wiwa,
The Dial,
24 Mar. 2026
Noun
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That will not be achieved with our current focus on military strength and power as well as economic domination — only an uneasy peace, until toppled by resistance and rebellion, as all the great empires have been in the past.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
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Indonesia’s richest man, Michael Bambang Hartono, who helped turn the Djarum cigarette company into one of the country’s largest business empires and later became a controlling shareholder of Bank Central Asia, Indonesia’s biggest private lender, died Thursday.—
Niniek Karmini,
Fortune,
19 Mar. 2026
Noun
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On Tuesday, after dozens of tit-for-tat strikes between the two countries, oil prices climbed again.—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
25 Mar. 2026
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Across Asia, countries are investing heavily in nuclear power, hydrogen infrastructure, and grid expansion to secure long-term resilience.—
Derek Chollet,
semafor.com,
25 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“City-states.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/city-states. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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