city

noun

1. A large settlement, bigger than a town; sometimes with a specific legal definition, depending on the place.

   “São Paulo is the largest city in South America.”

   “Ah, knovv you not the Citie fauours them, / And they haue troupes of Souldiers at their beck?”

   “So this was my future home, I thought![…]Backed by towering hills, the but faintly discernible purple line of the French boundary off to the southwest, a sky of palest Gobelin flecked with fat, fleecy little clouds, it in truth looked a dear little city; the city of one's dreams.”

   “But clever cities will not necessarily be better ones.”

   “One of the hidden glories of Victorian engineering is proper drains. Isolating a city’s effluent and shipping it away in underground sewers has probably saved more lives than any medical procedure except vaccination.”

2. (UK, historical)A settlement granted special status by royal charter or letters patent; traditionally, a settlement with a cathedral regardless of size.

   “Manchester, incorporated in 1838, was made the centre of a bishopric in 1847 and became a city in 1853. Liverpool was transformed into a city by Royal Charter when the new diocese of Liverpool was created in 1880.”

   “St Davids itself is the smallest city in Great Britain, with a population of less than 2,000.”

3. (Australia)The central business district; downtown.

   “I'm going into the city today to do some shopping.”

4. (slang)A large amount of something (used after the noun).

   “It’s video game city in here!”

name

1. (informal)Manchester City Football Club, an English football club.

   “City will reportedly look to have a fee for Aguero.”

   “Smalling’s quick one-two of yellow cards towards the end of the first half had left an air of inevitability about what would follow and, if anything, it was probably a surprise that City restricted themselves to Sergio Agüero’s goal bearing in mind another of United’s defenders, Marcos Rojo, was taken off on a stretcher early in the second half with a dislocated shoulder.”

2. (UK)The City of London, the historic core of London where the Roman settlement of Londinium was established.
3. (UK)The United Kingdom's financial industries, which are principally based in the City of London.
4. (New-York)The borough of Manhattan, the historic core of New York.
5. Any of several other cities in metropolitan areas (such as San Francisco).