city center

noun

The central business and shopping area of a city.

“Near-synonyms: town center, town centre”

Similar
downtowncentral business districttown centertown centrecity centrecentral city
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Meanings

nouncity center (plural city centers)

plural city centers · alternative city centre

  1. USThe central business and shopping area of a city.

    Near-synonyms: town center, town centre

    1 more example

    In an effort to tackle mounting greenhouse gas emissions, the city of Hamburg, Germany, has decided to ban all cars from the city center by 2034.

    2014 January 21, Benjamin Preston, “Automobiles: Wheelies”, in New York Times, retrieved 19 Feb 2014

    Synonyms: downtown, central business district, town center, town centre

Synonyms & antonyms

nounThe central business and shopping area of a city.

Similar
downtowncentral business districttown centertown centre

More synonyms by meaning

nounthe central part of a city

Similar
city centrecentral city
Broader
centercentremiddle
Also see
central business districtcentral citycity centredowntowntown centre

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Cite this entry
APA

city center. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/city%20center

MLA

“city center.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/city%20center. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “city center,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/city%20center.

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