From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishcitycit‧y /ˈsɪti/ ●●● S1 W1 noun (plural cities) [countable] 1 TOWNa large important town The nearest big city was St. Louis. → inner city2 a) British English a large town that has been given an official title by a king or queen the city of Oxford b) American English a town of any size that has definite borders and powers that were officially given by the state government The city of Cleveland celebrated its 200th birthday with fireworks and an outdoor concert.3 PERSON/PEOPLE[usually singular] the people who live in a city The city has been living in fear since last week’s earthquake.4 → the cityCOLLOCATIONSadjectivesa big/large/major cityThey have stores in Houston, Dallas, and other big cities.a great city (=very important and interesting)Cairo is one of the world's great cities.a capital city (=where the government of a country or state is)Cuba's capital city is Havana.somebody's home/native city (=where they were born or grew up)He said that he never wanted to leave his home city.a cosmopolitan city (=full of people from different parts of the world)San Francisco is a very cosmopolitan city. an industrial citySheffield is an industrial city in the north of England.a provincial city (=in a part of the country that is not near the capital)There have been protests in the capital and in provincial cities.an ancient citythe ancient city of Jerusalema historic city (=very old and with an interesting history)Budapest is a beautiful and historic city.a cathedral city (=with a cathedral)He went to university in the cathedral city of Durham.a university city (=with a university)Uppsala is a university city.a walled city (=surrounded by a wall)the old walled city of Algheroa twin city British English (=one that has a special relationship with a similar town in another country)Strasbourg is Leicester's twin city in France.city + NOUNthe city centre British English, the city center American EnglishThe hotel is in the city centre.the city limits American English (=the furthest parts of the city)rural areas south of the city limitscity lifethe advantages of city lifea city dweller (=someone who lives in a city)In the summer, city dwellers escape to the sea.a city streetTraffic was moving slowly along the city streets.phrasesin the heart of a cityThe cathedral is right in the heart of the city.the outskirts of a city (=the edge)There were several bombings on the outskirts of the city.verbsfound a city (=start developing a new city)He founded the city of Baghdad in the 8th century.THESAURUSplace with houses, shops, and officescity a large area with houses, shops, offices etc that is often the centre of government for an area. A city is bigger than a townThe nearest big city is San Francisco.town a large area with houses, shops, offices etc. A town is smaller than a cityLa Coruña is a pretty seaside town. capital (also capital city) the city where the government of a country or state isWe travelled to Budapest, the capital of Hungary.metropolis a big busy city that is full of people and activityAfter 1850 Paris grew quickly into a busy metropolis.urban adjective [only before noun] relating to towns and citiesAir pollution is particularly bad in urban areas.urban developmentoutside part of citythe outskirts the area around the edge of a city or just outside itDisneyland is on the outskirts of Paris.suburb an area around the edges of a city, where many people liveHe lives in a suburb of London. | the suburbsMore and more people are moving to the suburbs.
Examples from the Corpus
city• the ancient city of Damascus• You should visit San Francisco. It's a beautiful city.• This romantic tale casts back to Ruritania especially in the implied distinction between city and country.• I was alone in a big city in a new country.• He blew up five city blocks, of course.• The major industrial cities were getting increasingly overcrowded.• Many inner cities that were once treated as war zones have become pleasant and habitable again.• It's an old city with about 200,000 residents.• Leeds is a thriving, vibrant, and prosperous city.• Sant'Elia's city was a utopian metropolis designed on a monumental scale.• Something that gives shape and meaning to the amorphous experience of waking up in a strange hotel room in a strange city.• Panic swept the city after the earthquake.• The city of Barcelona is famous for its wonderful architecture.• The city of Parlier is in Fresno county.• The survey looked at which cities cater for cyclists and covered everything from parking facilities to potholes.City, thethe CityCity, the (also the City of London) British English an area in central London where there are many large banks and financial organizations, including the Bank of England and the stock exchange. The City has an area of about one square mile (about 2.5 square kilometres), and it is sometimes called ‘the Square Mile’, especially in newspapers. Its name is sometimes used to mean people who work there and make financial decisions. There is a similar area in New York City called Wall Street The City is optimistic about the outlook for inflation. a firm of City stockbrokersFrom Longman Business DictionaryCityCit‧y /ˈsɪti/ nounFINANCE1the City London’s financial institutions, for example the INTERNATIONAL STOCK EXCHANGE and other markets, banks, and insurance companies considered together as a financial centreThe City will keep its position as a leading financial centre whether the UK joins the single currency or not.2the City the area of London where most financial institutions are basedThe investment banking firm left the City for brand new premises in Canary Wharf.Origin city (1100-1200) Old French cité, from Latin civitas “citizenship, state, city of Rome”, from civis; → CIVIC 