Entry 3 senses Webster, 1913 Metropolis /mət-räp'-əl-əs/ · Me·trop·o·lis · IPA /məˈtɹɑp.ə.lɪs/ 01 n. The mother city; the chief city of a kingdom, state, or country. 1. The mother city; the chief city of a kingdom, state, or country. “[Edinburgh] gray metropolis of the North.” — Tennyson. 2. The seat, or see, of the metropolitan, or highest church dignitary.(Eccl.) “The great metropolis and see of Rome.” — Shak. 3. Any large city.