/ ˈsɪti; NAmE / noun ( pl. -ies )
1.
[ C ] a large and important town :
the city centre
one of the world's most beautiful cities
a major city
the country's capital city
Mexico City
—see also inner city
2.
[ C ] ( BrE ) a town that has been given special rights by a king or queen, usually one that has a cathedral :
the city of York
3.
[ C ] ( NAmE ) a town that has been given special rights by the state government
4.
[ sing.+ sing./pl. v . ] all the people who live in a city :
The city turned out to welcome the victorious team home.
5.
the City [ sing. ] ( BrE ) Britain's financial and business centre, in the oldest part of London :
a City stockbroker
What is the City's reaction to the cut in interest rates?
6.
[ U ] ( informal ) used after other nouns to say that a place is full of a particular thing :
It's not exactly fun city here is it?
•
IDIOMS
see freedom
••
WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : from Old French cite , from Latin civitas , from civis citizen. Originally denoting a town, and often used as a Latin equivalent to Old English burh borough , the term was later applied to foreign and ancient cities and to the more important English boroughs. The connection between city and cathedral grew up under the Norman kings, as the episcopal sees (many had been established in villages) were removed to the chief borough of the diocese.