Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “metropole” come from?

Metropole comes from French métropole, from Latin metropolis, from Ancient Greek μητρόπολις, combining μήτηρ (mother) and πόλις (city).

metropole (English): A metropolis; the main city of a country or area;...

Definitions

  1. A metropolis; the main city of a country or area;...

Ancestry of “metropole”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishmetropol—
2Middle Frenchmetropole—
3Latinmētropolis—
4Ancient Greekμητρόπολιςmother-state; one's mother-city, mother country,...
5Ancient Greekπόλιςcity; a whole country, as dependent on and called...
6Proto-Hellenicptóliscity
7Proto-Indo-EuropeantpólHis—
8Proto-Indo-EuropeantpelH-fortification, city
Every word from Proto-Indo-European tpelH- →