cosmopolitan

1 of 2

adjective

cos·​mo·​pol·​i·​tan ˌkäz-mə-ˈpä-lə-tən 

1

: having wide international sophistication : worldly

Greater cultural diversity has led to a more cosmopolitan attitude among the town's younger generations.

2

: composed of persons, constituents, or elements from all or many parts of the world

a city with a cosmopolitan population

3

: having worldwide rather than limited or provincial scope or bearing

… his cosmopolitan benevolence, impartially extended to all races and to all creeds.

—Thomas Babington Macaulay

4

: found in most parts of the world and under varied ecological conditions

a cosmopolitan herb

cosmopolitanism

ˌkäz-mə-ˈpä-lə-tə-ˌni-zəm 

noun

cosmopolitan

2 of 2

noun

1

: cosmopolite

Many cosmopolitans around the world now also share the English language …

—Robert J. Shiller

2

or less commonly cosmo

ˈkäz-(ˌ)mō 

: a cocktail made of vodka, orange-flavored liqueur, lime juice, and cranberry juice

Did you know?

Defining Cosmopolitan (Not the Drink)

Since cosmopolitan includes the root polit-, from the Greek word for "citizen", someone who is cosmopolitan is a "citizen of the world". She may be able to read the morning paper in Rio de Janeiro, attend a lecture in Madrid, and assist at a refugee camp in Uganda with equal ease—and maybe all in the same week. And a city or a country that is cosmopolitan has aspects and elements that come from various countries.

Synonyms

Adjective

• smart
• sophisticated
• worldly
• worldly-wise

Noun

• city slicker
• cosmopolite
• metropolitan
• slicker
• sophisticate

Examples of cosmopolitan in a Sentence

Adjective

Greater cultural diversity has led to a more cosmopolitan attitude among the town's younger generations.

the cosmopolitan taste of the store's customers

It's one of the country's more cosmopolitan cities.

Noun

as someone who had lived in Paris for a year as an exchange student, she seemed very much the cosmopolitan to her old classmates

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

According to the team, this emphasizes the cosmopolitan nature of the Roman Empire. —Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 7 Nov. 2024

Like Trump, Carlson appeals to his base by positioning himself as a class traitor—not a man of the people, exactly, but an apostate from the cosmopolitan élite. —Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2024

Noun

Wildlife fanatics flock to Masai Mara for once-in-a-lifetime safaris, beach lovers island-hop through the turquoise waters of the Lamu Archipelago, and cosmopolitans appreciate Nairobi's growing culinary and art scene. —Hannah Towey, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2024

Just like globalization forced us all to become cosmopolitans (citizens of the universe) by breaking spatial boundaries, the aging of the internet compels us to become archeopolitans—citizens of an archive—by breaking down temporal boundaries. —Carl Öhman, TIME, 31 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

see cosmopolite

Noun

see cosmopolite

First Known Use

Adjective

1798, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Noun

circa 1645, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

cosmopolitan

adjective

cos·​mo·​pol·​i·​tan

ˌkäz-mə-ˈpäl-ət-ᵊn

1

: having a worldwide scope or outlook : not limited or narrow

cosmopolitan world travelers

2

: composed of persons or elements from many parts of the world

a cosmopolitan city

3

: found in most parts of the world and in many kinds of ecological conditions

a cosmopolitan herb

cosmopolitan noun