met·ro·pol·i·tan
ˌme-trə-ˈpä-lə-tən 
1
: the primate of an ecclesiastical province
2
: one who lives in a metropolis or displays metropolitan manners or customs
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
E. Tammy Kim, The New Yorker, 18 Jan. 2025
Arizona's population has skyrocketed over the past decade — but some of the highest rates of growth have occurred outside of our major metropolitans, per an Axios analysis of the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
—Jessica Boehm, Axios, 9 Jan. 2025
Daryl Fairweather, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
The New York metropolitan area already has a steep housing shortage because not enough homes have been built in the past few decades.
—James Barron, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for metropolitan
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Noun
Han, looking almost cartoonishly mid-century metropolitan, wears a dark coat, with the lapel snapped up, over a white shirt and a dark tie.
—E. Tammy Kim, The New Yorker, 18 Jan. 2025
Arizona's population has skyrocketed over the past decade — but some of the highest rates of growth have occurred outside of our major metropolitans, per an Axios analysis of the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
—Jessica Boehm, Axios, 9 Jan. 2025
Adjective
Research from the Census Bureau shows that individuals who move to new metropolitan areas for work fare better than those who stay put during their job search.
—Daryl Fairweather, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
The New York metropolitan area already has a steep housing shortage because not enough homes have been built in the past few decades.
—James Barron, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for metropolitan
Cite this Entry
“Metropolitan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/metropolitan. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
metropolitan
1 of 2 noun
met·ro·pol·i·tan
ˌme-trə-ˈpäl-ət-ᵊn
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 adjective1
: 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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