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
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Noun
Fort Myers Known as the gateway to Southwest Florida, Fort Myers is an all-in-one vacation destination that effortlessly blends a vibrant metropolitan with tranquil beaches, cultural attractions, and great dining. Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 29 Oct. 2024 The program was founded in 2018 with the goal of enticing knowledge workers to a budding metropolitan that could no longer be as reliant on the volatile gas and oil industries that represented a boom for Tulsa in the twentieth century, according to Tulsa Remote managing director Justin Harlan. Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2024
Adjective
The company continues to focus on expanding its loan portfolio and increasing its market share in the Chicago metropolitan area and southern Wisconsin. Quartz Bot, Quartz, 8 Nov. 2024 Clinton had a lead in 11 of the 67 counties, which included mostly the metropolitan areas around Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Harrisburg. Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for metropolitan 

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 18 Nov. 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

More from Merriam-Webster on metropolitan

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!