edge city

noun

A concentration of business, shopping, and entertainment locations outside a traditional downtown (or central business district), in what was previously a residential or rural area.

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Meanings

nounedge city (plural edge cities)

plural edge cities

  1. USurban studiesA concentration of business, shopping, and entertainment locations outside a traditional downtown (or central business district), in what was previously a residential or rural area.

Origin

Popularized by the 1991 book Edge City: Life on the New Frontier, by Joel Garreau.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French pseudopole
  • pseudopoleTranslations
Greek μητροπολιτικό προάστιο
  • μητροπολιτικό προάστιο (mitropolitikó proástio)Translations
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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