city-state
noun
ˈsi-tē-ˌstāt 
also -ˈstāt
: an autonomous state consisting of a city and surrounding territory
Examples of city-state in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Birds of War Around 2450 BCE, two Mesopotamian city-states called Lagash and Umma went to war over a piece of rich farmland on their border.
—
Ian Rose, JSTOR Daily, 10 Apr. 2024
The game’s purview extends to the downtrodden toiling (and playing, like those youngsters) under the neo-feudal yoke of Shinra, the energy company that doubles as an autocratic city-state.
—Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 22 Feb. 2024
Meanwhile, the rise of other powerful families in Italy challenged Medici supremacy, and other nearby city-states gained power and further diminished the Medicis’ political leverage.
—Neil Quilliam, Foreign Affairs, 29 Dec. 2023
Perhaps surprisingly for a city-state like Singapore, manufacturing contributes about 20% of the country’s GDP.
—Lionel Lim, Fortune Asia, 23 May 2024
These are the industrial hinterlands of Glendale, a tidy enclave in the rambling city-state that is Los Angeles, and here, among plumbing supply warehouses and an Amazon delivery van lot, sits a squat cinder-block building, an unexpected portal.
—Liz Brown, New York Times, 22 May 2024
In a meeting of the Baltimore City delegation earlier this month, Scott’s office asked legislators to consider a hybrid city-state appointment model, instead.
—Amanda Yeager, Baltimore Sun, 22 Feb. 2024
Dozens of boreholes were drilled into the ground at the site, once a pre-Hispanic city-state, revealing layers of artifacts from various societies.
—Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2024
Thanks to the conservation measures spearheaded by this enterprising city-state and its dedicated conservationists, the fate of the species is a bit more secure.
—Anne Pinto-Rodrigues, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Apr. 2024
Ian Rose, JSTOR Daily, 10 Apr. 2024
The game’s purview extends to the downtrodden toiling (and playing, like those youngsters) under the neo-feudal yoke of Shinra, the energy company that doubles as an autocratic city-state.
—Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 22 Feb. 2024
Meanwhile, the rise of other powerful families in Italy challenged Medici supremacy, and other nearby city-states gained power and further diminished the Medicis’ political leverage.
—Neil Quilliam, Foreign Affairs, 29 Dec. 2023
Perhaps surprisingly for a city-state like Singapore, manufacturing contributes about 20% of the country’s GDP.
—Lionel Lim, Fortune Asia, 23 May 2024
These are the industrial hinterlands of Glendale, a tidy enclave in the rambling city-state that is Los Angeles, and here, among plumbing supply warehouses and an Amazon delivery van lot, sits a squat cinder-block building, an unexpected portal.
—Liz Brown, New York Times, 22 May 2024
In a meeting of the Baltimore City delegation earlier this month, Scott’s office asked legislators to consider a hybrid city-state appointment model, instead.
—Amanda Yeager, Baltimore Sun, 22 Feb. 2024
Dozens of boreholes were drilled into the ground at the site, once a pre-Hispanic city-state, revealing layers of artifacts from various societies.
—Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2024
Thanks to the conservation measures spearheaded by this enterprising city-state and its dedicated conservationists, the fate of the species is a bit more secure.
—Anne Pinto-Rodrigues, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'city-state.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“City-state.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/city-state. Accessed 4 Jul. 2024.
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