English

city

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

    Etymology graph

    • inherited
    • borrowed
    • derived
    • parts
    • meaning component
    • sound component
    • related
    React Flow

    Click a node to zoom in · double-click to open it

    Origin

    Inherited from Middle English cite, derived from Old French cite, derived from Late Latin cīvitātem (“city”), in Classical Latin "citizenry", derived from cīvis (“fellow-citizen”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱey- (“lie down; settle”). Cognate with Old English hīwan pl (“members of one's household, servants”). See hewe. Doublet of civitas. Mostly displaced native Old English burg, whence Modern English borough.

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • inheritedMiddle Englishcite
      • borrowedOld Frenchcitet
        • inheritedLate Latincīvitās
          • derivedLatinceivitās
            • partLatinceivis
              • inheritedProto-Italic*keiwis
                • derivedProto-Indo-European*ḱey- “to settle, be lying down”
            • partLatin-tās “-ity”
              • inheritedProto-Italic*-tāts
                • inheritedProto-Indo-European*-teh₂ts

    Related: English civitas (doublet), Old English hīwan

    Words built on it: city state, Old City, free city, city water

    Sources