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• acropolis
  acropolis

  noun

  the citadel or high fortified area of an ancient Greek city.
• Acropolis
  Acropolis

  noun

  the citadel of Athens on which the Parthenon and the Erechtheum stand

acropolis

American  

[uh-krop-uh-lis] / əˈkrɒp ə lɪs /

noun

1. the citadel or high fortified area of an ancient Greek city.

2. the Acropolis, the citadel of Athens and the site of the Parthenon.

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acropolis ¹ British  

/ əˈkrɒpəlɪs /

noun

1. the citadel of an ancient Greek city

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Acropolis ² British  

/ əˈkrɒpəlɪs /

noun

1. the citadel of Athens on which the Parthenon and the Erechtheum stand

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Acropolis Cultural  

1. The fortified high point of ancient Athens (see also Athens). Once the center of Athenian life, the Acropolis is now the site of famous ruins, including the Parthenon. In Greek, the word means “high” (acro) “city” (polis).

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Other Word Forms

• acropolitan
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of acropolis

From the Greek word akrópolis, dating back to 1655–65. See acro-, -polis

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Compare meaning

How does acropolis compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• acropolis vs. Parthenon

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Explanation

An ancient Greek settlement built high up on a hill was an acropolis. These areas functioned as forts, religious centers, and ultimately as cultural centers of larger cities. Acropolis is rooted in the Greek roots akros, "highest," and polis, "city." Ancient Greek and Roman cities commonly included an acropolis. In ancient times, the Athenian Acropolis was the city center — and it remains a landmark in modern Athens today, housing the Parthenon and looming over the city from a tall, rocky outcrop.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

acropolis Acropolis

For the past several years, Anderson has focused on documenting the walls and buildings of Sardis' acropolis, which became an important center during the Byzantine period after Roman rule.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026

Greece maintains the ancient antiquities, also known as the Elgin Marbles, were illegally removed from Athens' acropolis, and has has long called for their return from the museum.

From BBC ● Dec. 4, 2024

Volunteers fought to extinguish a blaze that blackened the hillside and charred buildings near Lindos, one of the island's most-visited sites and famed for an acropolis perched on a massive rock within medieval walls.

From Reuters ● Jul. 23, 2023

Towns arose around a hill fortress or acropolis to which inhabitants could flee in times of danger.

From Textbooks ● Apr. 19, 2023

A vast promenade, mausoleum, acropolis, planetarium, library, opera house—everything marble and granite, everything profoundly clean.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

Against the backdrop of the Acropolis, he argued the ancient Athenians defined the core of Western civilization.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

The blast happened in the Plaka area of the Greek capital, a neighbourhood close to tourist sites such as the Acropolis, with local media reporting the building housed a holiday rental.

From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026

Four American tourists visiting Greece were among six people confirmed dead Saturday after a blast brought down the small Athens residential building they had been staying in near the Acropolis, officials said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026

“What the Acropolis was to Ancient Greece during her Golden Age, the new Civic Center now being hewn from the shabby slopes of Bunker Hill will be to Los Angeles,” The Times wrote in 1957.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 13, 2024

Harrison, at one point, was standing next to a man named George Despinis, the head of the Acropolis Museum in Athens.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell

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