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conurbation

American  
[kon-er-bey-shuhn] / ˌkɒn ərˈbeɪ ʃən /

noun

  1. an extensive urban area resulting from the expansion of several cities or towns so that they coalesce but usually retain their separate identities.

conurbation British  
/ ˌkɒnɜːˈbeɪʃən /

noun

  1. a large densely populated urban sprawl formed by the growth and coalescence of individual towns or cities

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of conurbation

con- + Latin urb- (stem of urbs ) “city, capital city, Rome” + -ation; coined by Sir Patrick Geddes (1854–1932), Scottish sociologist and city planner, in his Cities in Evolution (1915)

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.

It will mean the cancellation of services in the West Midlands conurbation, Warwickshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Shropshire and Staffordshire.

From BBC • Nov. 4, 2022

"Linton-on-Ouse is not a major conurbation and has limited infrastructure which would struggle to support such an increased number."

From BBC • May 10, 2022

In Yuzhou city, part of Xuchang's conurbation, 1 million residents are already under lockdown, with people in some areas unable to leave their homes.

From Reuters • Jan. 6, 2022

L’Asile, a conurbation of 52,000 people living mostly in rural communities, was founded in the 1930s.

From Washington Post • Aug. 21, 2021

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Prasat Kra Chap at Koh Ker, part of the vast medieval conurbation revealed by laser scanning in Cambodia.

From The Guardian • Jun. 10, 2016

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.