metropolis
Other forms: metropolises
A large, densely populated urban area is called a metropolis. "She liked living in a metropolis because there were many opportunities in a city that were not available elsewhere, like 24-hour diners."
The noun metropolis comes from the Greek roots mētēr, meaning "mother," and pólis, meaning "city." Historically, the word referred to the founding city-state of a region in Ancient Greece. Today the word refers to any urban area. The largest metropolis in Massachusetts is Boston, which is also the capital. Sometimes people use the word metropolis ironically or sarcastically: "She came from the booming metropolis of Tumbleweed, population 325."
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a large and densely populated urban area; may include several independent administrative districtssynonyms: city, urban centertypes:national capitalthe capital city of a nationprovincial capitalthe capital city of a provincestate capitalthe capital city of a political subdivision of a countrytype of:municipalityan urban district having corporate status and powers of self-government
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people living in a large densely populated municipalitysynonyms: citytype of:municipalitypeople living in a town or city having local self-government
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Vocabulary lists containing metropolis
Hit the mother lode and learn these words derived from the Latin root māter and the Greek root metèr, both meaning "mother."
Set in 1968, this companion novel to The Wednesday Wars focuses on Doug Swieteck, who struggles to adjust to life in a small town and to cope with his hostile family.