metropolitan

1 of 2

noun

met·​ro·​pol·​i·​tan ˌme-trə-ˈpä-lə-tən How to pronounce metropolitan (audio)
1
: the primate of an ecclesiastical province
2
: one who lives in a metropolis or displays metropolitan manners or customs

metropolitan

2 of 2

adjective

1
: of or constituting a metropolitan or his see
2
: of, relating to, or characteristic of a metropolis and sometimes including its suburbs
3
: of, relating to, or constituting a mother country as distinguished from a colony

Examples of metropolitan in a Sentence

Noun a TV series about the lives and loves of a group of young, attractive metropolitans Adjective the greater New York metropolitan area This is one of the best seafood restaurants in metropolitan Los Angeles.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Unfortunately, in the many car-centric metropolitans of the US, a leisurely stroll from your hotel lobby might just lead you to a parking lot instead. Hannah Towey, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Jan. 2024 In September, median asking rents in the 50 largest metropolitans dropped to $1,747, according to Realtor.com’s latest rental report released on Monday. Byalena Botros, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2023 RentCafe’s report was based on Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, or IPUMS, data from the University of Minnesota looking at the nation’s 110 largest metropolitans. Bailey Schulz, USA TODAY, 7 Apr. 2023 The city was the last metropolitan in Alabama to rid itself of the commission form of government. John Sharp, al, 18 Jan. 2022 Thailand declared semi-lockdowns in the Bangkok metropolitan and 6 other province on July 12. Fernando Alfonso Iii, CNN, 17 July 2021 But truly rural areas are a relatively small slice of the electorate: In 2016, only 14 percent of all voters cast ballots in counties defined by the Census Bureau as non-metropolitan. David Wasserman, NBC News, 28 Oct. 2019 Brexit devolved into an identity war: an English counter-revolution between nationalists and internationalists, country geezers versus young metropolitans, Little England versus Great Britain. Tina Brown, Time, 6 June 2019 The new list ranks the country's 125 largest metropolitan areas based on affordability, job prospects and quality of life. Enquirer Staff, Cincinnati.com, 13 Apr. 2018
Adjective
But does a rural location matter when there are Zoom meetings and Google Hangouts along with direct flights to 21 major metropolitan areas? Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 13 Mar. 2024 It's been a year since the EPA began the first phase of a plan to help states, major metropolitan areas, U.S. territories and over 200 tribes and tribal groups develop climate action strategies to address their greenhouse gas emissions — and all but five states have joined in. Tracy J. Wholf, CBS News, 12 Mar. 2024 Other surveys by the firm Bluefield Research have compiled data on water prices in 50 of the largest U.S. metropolitan areas. Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 12 Mar. 2024 More than 160,000 of the displaced are trapped in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, which is surrounded by armed groups, the United Nations said. Maham Javaid, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024 The practice was even more widespread in big metropolitan areas: A quarter of New York restaurants on Resy charged at least one cancellation fee in January, as did one-fifth of restaurants in Los Angeles and Miami. T.m. Brown, New York Times, 11 Mar. 2024 The San Diego region receives an average of 12 inches of rain per year, which does not meet the needs of this metropolitan area. Kobi Bardugo, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Mar. 2024 Elmore County is part of the Montgomery metropolitan area. Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 8 Mar. 2024 Only one public hospital is still operating in Port-au-Prince’s metropolitan area, according to an official from the country’s Civil Protection. Michael Rios, CNN, 8 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'metropolitan.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Late Latin metropolitanus of the see of a metropolitan, from metropolita, noun, metropolitan, from Late Greek mētropolitēs, from mētropolis see of a metropolitan, from Greek, capital

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of metropolitan was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near metropolitan

Cite this Entry

“Metropolitan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/metropolitan. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

metropolitan

1 of 2 noun
met·​ro·​pol·​i·​tan ˌme-trə-ˈpäl-ət-ᵊn How to pronounce metropolitan (audio)
1
: the head of a church province
2
: one who lives in a metropolis or who has metropolitan manners or customs

metropolitan

2 of 2 adjective
1
: of, relating to, or characteristic of a metropolis
2
: of or relating to a city and the densely populated surrounding areas

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