metro

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈmɛtɹəʊ/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈmɛtɹoʊ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛtɹəʊ

From French métro, clipping of métropolitain (from Ancient Greek μήτηρ (mḗtēr, “mother”) + πόλις (pólis, “city”)), as in the Chemin de fer métropolitain, an early name for the Paris Métro. This name was a direct translation of "Metropolitan Railway", which was the original name of the earliest part of the London Underground, constructed in 1863.

• métro

metro (plural metros)

1. (general) A rapid transit rail transport system, or a train in such systems, generally underground and serving a metropolitan area.

   Synonyms: (US, Canada, Scotland, South Africa) subway, (London) underground, underground railway, (London slang) Tube, tube

   • 2000, Frederick Parkins, The NATO Opposition, →ISBN, page 27:

     Recalling that Davide Lungo returned the van at the airport, Pizo descended the nearby stairs to the underground metro, and boarded the next metro stopping there.

   • 2014, Lily Sergueiew, I Worked Alone: Diary of a Double Agent in World War II Europe, →ISBN:

     I hurry to the underground. ... I am waiting for the next metro; I'll take it.

   • 2017, Pam Taylor, 399 Days: Our European Escapade, →ISBN:

     What we entered into here was well lit and had clean silver curvy walls that ended in nice automatic elevators that took you underground. The walls are not infested with graffiti and advertisements; they were clean and shiny. We waited on nice benches until the metro arrived.

2. (less common) An urban rapid transit rail transport system, normally with lighter track and light trains (i.e. an S-Bahn or similar), or a train in such systems.
   • 2006, C. A. Brebbia, V. Dolezel, Urban Transport XII: Urban Transport and the Environment in the 21st Century, page 227:

     Informs how long the passenger has to wait for the next metro

   • 2008, Brandon Wilson, Along the Templar Trail: Seven Million Steps for Peace, →ISBN, page 75:

     With the weather clear and warm for a change, I decided to catch the next metro to the outskirts of town by myself.

   • 2015, Pratyush Sinha, Love in Metro: Story of Love and Ego, →ISBN:

     I boarded the Yellow Line Metro, beaming with confidence. I got down at Rajiv Chowk to continue my journey towards Noida City Centre (NCC). The next metro arrived.

Clipping of metropolitan.

metro (plural metros)

1. A metropolitan area.
   • 2019 August 12, Derek Thompson, “America's Hot New Job Is Being a Rich Person's Servant”, in The Atlantic‎:

     In an age of persistently high inequality, work in high-cost metros catering to the whims of the wealthy—grooming them, stretching them, feeding them, driving them—has become one of the fastest-growing industries.

metro (comparative more metro, superlative most metro)

1. metropolitan

• Metro Vancouver

• metrosexual

• Moret, Tomer, Tormé

metro m

1. metre

Clipping of metropolità.

• IPA^(key): (Central) [ˈmɛ.tɾu]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [ˈmɛ.tɾo]
• IPA^(key): (Valencian) [ˈme.tɾo]

metro m (plural metros)

1. metro (train)

• “metro” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

metro

1. metro, underground railway

• Mirjejev, V. A., Usejinov, S. M. (2002) Ukrajinsʹko-krymsʹkotatarsʹkyj slovnyk [Ukrainian – Crimean Tatar Dictionary]‎, Simferopol: Dolya, →ISBN

• IPA^(key): [ˈmɛtro]

metro n

1. metro, subway (underground railway)

Borrowed from French métro, from métropolitain in chemin de fer métropolitain.

• IPA^(key): /ˈmeː.troː/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: me‧tro

metro m (plural metro's, diminutive metrootje n)

1. An underground railway or underground-railway system, a subway, a metro.
2. An underground-railway train.

• IPA^(key): [ˈmetro]
• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -etro
• Hyphenation: me‧tro

metro (accusative singular metron, plural metroj, accusative plural metrojn)

1. metre (unit of measurement)
2. (poetry) metrum

From French métro.

• IPA^(key): /ˈmetro/, [ˈme̞t̪ro̞]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -etro
• Syllabification^(key): met‧ro

metro

1. an underground, a subway, a Tube or a metro

   Synonym: maanalainen

• “metro”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎ (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-03

• termo-

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛtɾo/ [ˈmɛ.t̪ɾʊ]
• Rhymes: -ɛtɾo

Borrowed from French mètre, from Ancient Greek μέτρον (métron, “measure”).

metro m (plural metros)

1. (measure) meter
2. (measuring instruments) tape measure, measuring tape
3. (poetry, music) metre (the rhythm or measure in verse and musical composition)

Borrowed from French métro, clipping of métropolitain.

metro m (plural metros)

1. (transport) metro

   Synonym: metropolitano

• “metro”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, since 2012

• IPA^(key): /ˈmetro/

metro (plural metri)

1. metre (unit of measurement)
2. metrum of poetry

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛ.tro/
• Rhymes: -ɛtro
• Hyphenation: mè‧tro

From Latin metrum (“a measure”), from Ancient Greek μέτρον (métron).

metro m (plural metri)

1. (unit of measure) metre, meter
2. ruler, measure
3. yardstick, criterion

Clipping of metropolitana.

metro f (invariable)

1. subway (US), underground (UK), Tube (the London underground)

   Synonym: metrò

• merto, morte, termo-, torme, tremo, tremò

metrō

1. dative/ablative singular of metrum

Borrowed from French métro, clipping of métropolitain, from Ancient Greek μήτηρ (mḗtēr, “mother”) + πόλις (pólis, “city”).

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛt.rɔ/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛtrɔ
• Syllabification: met‧ro

metro n

1. underground, subway, metro (underground railway)

• metro in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• metro in Polish dictionaries at PWN

• Hyphenation: me‧tro

From French mètre, from Latin metrum, from Ancient Greek μέτρον (métron, “measure”).

metro m (plural metros)

1. (measure) metre
   • 2007, J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter e as Relíquias da Morte [Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows] (Harry Potter; 7), Rio de Janeiro: Rocco, →ISBN, page 9:

     [...] a poucos metros de distância [...]

     [...] a few metres away [...]

• vara (historical Portuguese equivalent), jarda (American equivalent)

• metragem

• → Kadiwéu: meetilo

From French métro, clipping of métropolitain.

• metrô (Brazil)

metro m (plural metros)

1. (Portugal) underground, subway

   Synonym: metropolitano

metro n (plural metrouri)

1. Alternative form of metrou

mètrō m (Cyrillic spelling мѐтро̄)

1. metro

Borrowed from French métro.

• IPA^(key): [ˈmetrɔ]

metro n (genitive singular metra, nominative plural metrá, genitive plural metier, declension pattern of mesto)

1. metro

• “metro”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2024

• IPA^(key): /ˈmetɾo/ [ˈme.t̪ɾo]

• Audio (Colombia):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -etɾo
• Syllabification: me‧tro

Borrowed from French mètre, from Ancient Greek μέτρον (métron, “measure”).

metro m (plural metros)

1. (measure) meter
2. (measuring instruments) tape measure, measuring tape

   Synonym: cinta métrica

3. (measuring instruments) folding rule

   Synonym: metro plegable

4. (poetry, music) metre (the rhythm or measure in verse and musical composition)

• (unit of length): vara (historical Spanish equivalent)

• → Tagalog: metro

Borrowed from French métro, clipping of métropolitain.

metro m (plural metros)

1. (transport) metro

   Synonym: (Argentina) subte

• “metro”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014

• Moret, temor, termo, Torme, tremo

Borrowed from Spanish metro.

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈmetɾo/ [ˈmɛt.ɾo]
• Rhymes: -etɾo
• Syllabification: met‧ro

metro (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜒᜆ᜔ᜇᜓ)

1. (units of measure) meter
2. (measuring instrument) meter

   Synonym: kontador

3. (by extension) taximeter
4. (by extension) tape measure, measuring tape

From French métro.

metro (definite accusative metroyu, plural metrolar)

1. subway

From Italian metro.

metro (definite accusative metroyu, plural metrolar)

1. meter, metre

• Nişanyan, Sevan (2002–) “metro”, in Nişanyan Sözlük
• Avery, Robert et al., editors (2013), The Redhouse Dictionary Turkish/Ottoman English, 21st edition, Istanbul: Sev Yayıncılık, →ISBN

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

metro

1. metro (underground railway)

• Zajceva, N. G., Mullonen, M. I. (2007) “метро”, in Uz’ venä-vepsläine vajehnik / Novyj russko-vepsskij slovarʹ [New Russian–Veps Dictionary]‎, Petrozavodsk: Periodika