Word
citizen
Phoneticscit·i·zen, stress on the first syllable
US/ˈsɪtəzən/
UK/sˈɪtɪzən/
Definitions
01legal member of a country
B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun Law
n. a person who is a legal member of a country and has rights like voting.
n. a legally recognized subject or national of a state or commonwealth, either native or naturalized.
“After living in the country for ten years, she finally became a citizen.”
“The constitution guarantees that every citizen has the right to a fair trial and the freedom to participate in democratic elections.”
02resident of a city
B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun
n. someone who lives in a particular town or city.
n. an inhabitant of a city or town, especially one entitled to the rights and privileges of a free person in that municipality.
“The mayor asked the citizens of the town to help keep the parks clean.”
“The local council held a public forum to address the concerns of the citizens regarding the proposed redevelopment of the historic district.”
Synonyms
03a civilian
C1 · Advanced Countable noun Formal
n. a person who is not in the police or the military.
n. a member of the general public as distinguished from specialized state groups such as the military or police force.
“The police officer was praised for his polite treatment of the citizen.”
“The report highlighted the importance of maintaining a clear distinction between military operations and the rights of the private citizen.”
Synonyms
04software entity
C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Computing Technical
n. a piece of software or data that is treated as a full member of a system.
n. an entity within a software environment, such as an object or application, that is granted full rights and capabilities within that system.
“In this programming language, functions are treated as first-class citizens.”
“By treating asynchronous tasks as first-class citizens, the framework allows developers to manage complex operations with minimal boilerplate code.”
Usage
Often used in the phrase 'first-class citizen' to describe data types that can be passed as arguments.
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “citizen” in context.
Verb
01. become a citizen
“After living in the country for ten years, she finally decided to become a citizen.”
verb + noun
02. grant citizenship to a citizen
“The state may grant special status to a citizen who has performed extraordinary service.”
verb + noun + prep
03. protect the citizens
“The government's primary responsibility is to protect the citizens from harm.”
verb + noun
Adjective
04. global citizen
“In our interconnected world, it is important to think of yourself as a global citizen.”
adj + noun
05. law-abiding citizen
“He had always been a law-abiding citizen and had never even received a parking ticket.”
adj + noun
06. private citizen
“After leaving office, the former president returned to life as a private citizen.”
adj + noun
07. senior citizen
“Senior citizens are entitled to a discount on all public transportation.”
adj + noun
Noun
08. citizen participation
“The new urban project relies heavily on active citizen participation.”
noun + noun
09. rights of a citizen
“The constitution guarantees the fundamental rights of every citizen.”
noun + of + noun
Real-World Examples
“Settlers are Israeli citizens who live on Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.” “Police said the use of force was lawful and came after citizens attacked officers, arguing that there had been no other way to restore public order.” “When Russia releases an American citizen from prison, the US normally hands someone over in return.” “In a video post, he told citizens to be “completely ready” for aftershocks.” Etymology
From Middle English citeseyn, citezein, borrowed from Anglo-Norman citesain (“burgher; city-dweller”), citezein, etc., probably a variant of cithein under influence of deinzein (“denizen”), from Anglo-Norman and Old French citeain, etc. and citaien, citeien, etc. ("burgher"; modern French citoyen), from cité ("settlement; cathedral city, city"; modern French cité) + -ain or -ien (“-an, -ian”). See city and hewe.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
NOUN
Related words
Domain
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.B2 FirstIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.5.5–6.5TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 4.0–4.572–94TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.785–944
- Frequency
- Common
- Level
- B2 · Upper IntermediateOxford
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/citizen