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civitas

American  
[siv-i-tas, kee-wi-tahs] / ˈsɪv ɪˌtæs, ˈki wɪˌtɑs /

noun

plural

civitates
  1. the body of citizens who constitute a state, especially a city-state, commonwealth, or the like.

  2. citizenship, especially as imparting shared responsibility, a common purpose, and sense of community.


Etymology

Origin of civitas

From Latin cīvitās; literally, “commmunity of citizens, citizenship,” equivalent to cīvis “citizen, fellow citizen” + -tās -ty 2 ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

To gain civitas at birth, a person needed to be the child of two citizens.

From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023

In addition to maintaining their frontier with an army, Romans carried on a perpetual debate about citizenship, or civitas, and whether to extend its benefits to different groups.

From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023

Bell's book is the year's most promising start on the long road back to civitas.

From Time Magazine Archive

Harvey, a self-educated college dropout, talks a lot about William James, agora, public squares and preaching civitas.

From Time Magazine Archive

Mando et concedo et confirmo ut ista civitas cum sua plebe et cum omnibus suis pertinentiis sub tali lege et sub tali foro maneat per saecula cuncta.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3 "Frost" to "Fyzabad" by Various