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Webster 1913 Edition

City

Cit′y

(sĭt′y̆)
,
Noun.
;
pl.
Cities
(sĭt′ĭz)
.
[OE.
cite
, F.
cité
, fr. L.
civitas
citizenship, state, city, fr.
civis
citizen; akin to Goth.
heiwa
(in
heiwa
frauja man of the house), AS.
hīwan
, pl., members of a family, servants,
hīred
family, G.
heirath
marriage, prop., providing a house, E.
hind
a peasant.]
1.
A large town.
2.
A corporate town; in the United States, a town or collective body of inhabitants, incorporated and governed by a mayor and aldermen or a city council consisting of a board of aldermen and a common council; in Great Britain, a town corporate, which is or has been the seat of a bishop, or the capital of his see.
A
city
is a town incorporated; which is, or has been, the see of a bishop; and though the bishopric has been dissolved, as at Westminster, it yet remaineth a
city
.
Blackstone
When Gorges constituted York a
city
, he of course meant it to be the seat of a bishop, for the word
city
has no other meaning in English law.
Palfrey
Syn. – See
Village
.

Cit′y

,
Adj.
Of or pertaining to a city.
Shak.
City council
.
See under
Council
.
–
City court
,
The municipal court of a city.
[U. S.]
–
City ward
,
a watchman, or the collective watchmen, of a city.
[Obs.]
Fairfax.

Webster 1828 Edition

City

CITY

, n.
1.
In a general sense, a large town; a large number of houses and inhabitants, established in one place.
2.
In a more appropriate sense, a corporate town; a town or collective body of inhabitants, incorporated and governed by particular officers, as a mayor and aldermen. This is the sense of the word in the United States. In Great Britain, a city is said to be a town corporate that has a bishop and a cathedral church; but this is not always the fact.
3.
The collective body of citizens, or the inhabitants of a city; as when we say, the city voted to establish a market, and the city repealed the vote.

CITY

,
Adj.
Pertaining to a city; as city wives; a city feast; city manners.

Definition 2024

City

City

See also: city

English

Proper noun

City

  1. (Britain) A popular shortened form of the City of London, the historic core of London where the Roman settlement of Londinium was established.
  2. (Britain) A metonym for the United Kingdom's financial industries, which are principally based in the City of London.
  3. A popular name (not always capitalized) for any of several other cities in metropolitan areas (such as San Francisco).
  4. (soccer) A nickname for Manchester City Football Club, an English football club.
    City will reportedly look to have a fee for Aguero.

Translations

Synonyms

French

Proper noun

City f

  1. (finance, with definite article) the City

German

Etymology

Borrowing from English city

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈsɪti/

Noun

City f ‎(genitive City, plural Citys)

  1. city center, downtown, central business district
    Wir fahren heute Nachmittag in die City.‎
    We’re going downtown this afternoon.

Synonyms

city

city

See also: City

English

Alternative forms

  • cyte (13th - 16th centuries)

Noun

city ‎(plural cities)

  1. A large settlement, bigger than a town.
    São Paulo is one of the largest cities in South America.‎
    • 1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, OCLC 29686887 , chapter IV:
      So this was my future home, I thought! […] Backed by towering hills, the but faintly discernible purple line of the French boundary off to the southwest, a sky of palest Gobelin flecked with fat, fleecy little clouds, it in truth looked a dear little city; the city of one's dreams.
    • 2014 June 14, “It's a gas”, in The Economist, volume 411, number 8891:
      One of the hidden glories of Victorian engineering is proper drains. Isolating a city’s effluent and shipping it away in underground sewers has probably saved more lives than any medical procedure except vaccination.
  2. (Australia) The central business district; downtown.
    I'm going into the city today to do some shopping.‎

Derived terms

Look at pages starting with city.

Related terms

Translations

See also

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: several · either · whether · #339: city · held · help · number

Italian

Etymology

Borrowing from English city.

Noun

city f ‎(invariable)

  1. city (financial district of a city)

Derived terms

  • city bike
  • city car
  • city manager

Swedish

Pronunciation

Noun

city n

  1. inner city, the commercial centre of a medium-sized or larger city
    Lite närmare city, i närheten av konstmuseet, ligger Norrköpings mest attraktiva lägenheter.
    A little closer to the town centre, next to the art museum, you'll find Norrköping's most attractive apartments.
    Det finns mycket att förbättra i vårt city.
    There are many things that need improvement in our inner city.

Usage notes

  • centrum is used for the commercial centre of suburbs and small or medium-sized towns.

Synonyms

Etymology

From Middle English cite, from Old French cité, from Latin cīvitās ‎(“citizenry; community; a city with its hinterland”), from civis ‎(“native; townsman; citizen”), from Proto-Indo-European *key- ‎(“to lie, homestead”). Cognate with Old English hīwan ‎(“members of one's household, servants”, plural). See hewe.

Displaced native Middle English burgh, borough ‎(“fortified town; incorporated city”) and sted, stede ‎(“place, stead; city”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈsɪti/
  • (North of England) IPA(key): /sɪtɪ/
  • Rhymes: -ɪti
  • Hyphenation: ci‧ty
Part of New York City, a large city with many tall buildings.

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