city

Definitions

From Latin civitas 'the body of citizens, city-state,' which passed through Old French cité into English. The v softened away, leaving cit-. Originally city meant the community of citizens itself, not a place — only later did it come to mean the place where that community lives.

Why It Means This

City didn't start as a word for a place. Latin civitas meant the community of citizens — the people, with their rights and shared life. As it moved through French (cité) into English, the meaning slid from 'the citizen-community' to 'the place where the community lives.' That older sense still hides in phrases like 'the City of London' or being 'granted city status,' which are about a chartered community, not mere size.

Common Collocations

• 1.a major city大城市
• 2.city center市中心
• 3.inner city市中心贫民区
• 4.capital city首都
• 5.city dweller城里人

Example Sentences

• 1.

  New York is one of the largest cities in the world.

• 2.

  She moved to the city to look for better job opportunities.

• 3.

  The whole city celebrated when the team won the championship.

Easily Confused

city vs town vs metropolis — A town is smaller and less important; a city is large and (in some countries) formally chartered; a metropolis is a huge, dominant city, often the main one of a region. In the UK, 'city' is a legal status granted by the crown, not just a size.