global city

noun

A city that serves as a primary node in the global economic network; a metropolis.

Meanings

global city1

nounglobal city (plural global cities)

plural global cities

  1. urban studiesgeographyA city that serves as a primary node in the global economic network; a metropolis.

    Today's global cities have been empowered and transformed by the construction of a market economy at a global scale. In this sense, I would argue, the global city must be seen as primarily a political phenomenon.

    2016, Simon Curtis, Global Cities and Global Order, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 4

Global City2

proper noun
  1. PhilippinesabbreviationellipsisEllipsis of Bonifacio Global City.

Origin

Popularized by Dutch-American sociologist Saskia Sassen in The Global City: New York, London, Tokyo (1991).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French ville-monde, ville mondiale
  • ville-mondeTranslations
  • ville mondialeTranslations
Cite this entry
APA

global city. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/global%20city

MLA

“global city.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/global%20city. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “global city,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/global%20city.

Source: global city on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.