# metropolis

> English word · Noun · IPA /mɪˈtɹɒp.ə.lɪs/ · frequency rank #13,565

## Definitions
1. The mother (founding) polis (city state) of a colony.
2. A large, busy city, especially as the main city in an area or country or as distinguished from surrounding rural areas.
3. The see of a metropolitan bishop, ranking above its suffragan diocesan bishops.
4. A generic focus in the distribution of plants or animals.

## Etymology
Borrowed from Late Latin mētropolis, from Ancient Greek μητρόπολις (mētrópolis, “mother city”), from μήτηρ (mḗtēr, “mother”) + πόλις (pólis, “city (state)”). By surface analysis, metro- + -polis. Doublet of metropole.

## Common misspellings (15)
`emtropolis`, `mertopolis`, `metorpolis`, `metrooplis`, `metroplois`, `metropoils`, `metropoliss`, `metropollis`, `metropolsi`, `metroppolis`, `metrpoolis`, `metrropolis`, `mettropolis`, `mmetropolis`, `mteropolis`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/metropolis