Town vs City | Difference, Meaning & Use
A city is a larger and more important regional center than a town, but what we consider to be “large and important” may be subjective. If an urban center has an airport, freeways, and a metro system, people will typically think of it as a “city,” but if it has one main street with a few stores, offices, and a small bus station, it will probably be considered a “town.”
A place might commonly be referred to as a town in everyday conversation, despite being officially classified as a city under local law—like Abbeville, Alabama, for instance, which has a population of about 2,400.
The nouns town and city are used in some common expressions. You cannot typically use the two words interchangeably in these phrases.
| Expression with town or city | Meaning | Example in a sentence |
|---|---|---|
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To do something very enthusiastically and thoroughly | Wow! The teacher really went to town on your essay; there are so many comments and corrections. |
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To go out to have fun in bars or clubs | Let’s celebrate and paint the town red! |
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The best choice or the only available option | When it comes to quality and service, NT&F Solutions is the only game in town! |
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A person who leads a sophisticated urban lifestyle (often derogatory) | City slickers flock to this quaint country town on day trips during the summer months. |
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Emphasizes how something was defined or characterized by X (informal). | Episode one was boring city! I don’t think I’m going to continue watching it. |
City definition
A city is a large and important “town.” The local laws and traditions in a particular country, state, or province determine the official status of an urban center as either a “town” or city. However, here are some general distinctions between the two:
- A city will usually have a relatively high degree of political autonomy (e.g., powers to make decisions about local taxes and laws through its own government).
- A city will usually be a regional center, where important regional courts of law, government offices, educational institutions, medical facilities, and cultural institutions may be located.
- A city will usually have a relatively well-developed infrastructure and will therefore have a greater range of stores, more public transportation options, and larger road types, such as freeways, compared to towns in its region.
If someone considers a place that is officially a city to be “small” by their standards, they may still refer to it as a “town” in everyday conversation.
The noun city frequently combines with the adjectives “historic,” “cosmopolitan,” and “major” as well as the verbs “found” and “grow.”
Other languages may not have direct equivalents for the English words “town” and “city.”
In addition to the capital, Austin, the state’s other major cities include Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas.
Town definition
A town is a place where many people live and work in buildings that are located closely together, in contrast to the countryside, where there are lots of open spaces (such as fields) as well as landscapes with natural features such as forests and mountains.
The noun town often combines with the adjectives “small,” “rural,” “coastal,” and “sleepy.”
The sleepy town wakes up once a year for its world-famous Groundhog Day celebrations.
Town vs village
A village is generally smaller than a town. It is typically a small group of houses surrounded by countryside with a limited infrastructure but may have a few stores, a church, and a school, for instance.
Common compound nouns featuring the word village include “fishing village,” “mountain village,” and “farming village.”
Pietrapertosa is an ancient mountain village dating back to the 4th century B.C.
Frequently asked questions about town vs city
- What are some synonyms for city?
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Synonyms for the noun city include:
- Metropolis
- Urban center
- (Major) town
- Municipality
- Conurbation
On a related note, it can sometimes be tricky deciding whether to call a place a town or city—if it has large infrastructure including a metro system, then “city” is probably the best choice.
Why not use QuillBot’s free Paraphraser to find a synonym for “city” that fits your specific context?
- What is a cityscape?
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A cityscape is a view of a city or a city scene depicted in a painting or photograph. It is typically a wide view of the skyline, streets or buildings, often from a high point such as the top of a tall building (e.g., “The movie begins with helicopter views of Chicago’s cityscape”).
Like most expressions containing the word town or city, you can’t use the two words interchangeably in the compound noun “cityscape.”
If you’re looking for a synonym for “cityscape,” why not use QuillBot’s free Paraphraser for some ideas?
- What is a one horse town?
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A one-horse town is a small and unimportant town (e.g., “It’s a one-horse town that doesn’t even have a movie theater”).
Like most expressions containing the word town or city, you can’t use the two words interchangeably in the phrase “one-horse town.”
If you need a synonym for “one-horse town,” why not use QuillBot’s free Paraphraser to help you?
- What is the meaning of hometown?
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Your hometown is the town or city where you lived when you were a child and often where you were born, so you feel a close connection to it. It could be the place where you still live, or you could now be living somewhere else (e.g., “It’s my hometown, but I don’t go back there much because my parents have moved away”).
If you’re looking for another way of expressing the concept of “hometown,” why not use QuillBot’s free Paraphraser to help you?
- What is a ghost town?
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A ghost town is a town where no one lives anymore or where very few people still live, so many of the buildings are empty and derelict (e.g., “It became a ghost town after the coal mine closed in 1981”).
On a related note, it can be difficult to decide whether to call a place a town or city—if it has an airport and a metro system, then “city” is probably the word you’re looking for.
Have you tried QuillBot’s free Paraphraser to help polish your texts?
