Meanings
- informalSeattle (a city in Washington, United States).
The Emerald City, both famous and notorious for its clouds and rain, has been forced to institute a mandatory water conservation program for the first time "in memorable history."
1987 August 4, “Seattle curbs watering”, in Deseret News
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
The Seattle Convention and Visitors Bureau held a contest in 1981 to find a new nickname for Seattle. The winning entry, "Emerald City", came from Sarah Sterling-Franklin of Carmel, California, whose submission described the city as "the jewel of the Northwest, the Queen of the Evergreen State, the many-faced city of space, elegance, magic and beauty." "Emerald City" is also a reference to the fictional capital of the Land of Oz in the book series by L. Frank Baum.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Emerald City. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Emerald%20City
“Emerald City.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Emerald%20City. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Emerald City,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Emerald%20City.
Source: Emerald City on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.