Meaning & use
concrete jungle city
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Meanings
phrasefixed phrasefigurative
A city, or part of one, seen as a crowded, gray place full of concrete buildings and few natural features.
Grammar: Used as a noun phrase; the plural is 'concrete jungle cities'.
Patterns
- a concrete jungle city
- the concrete jungle city
- concrete jungle cities
After growing up in a village, Maya found the concrete jungle city overwhelming.
The documentary shows how wildlife survives in a concrete jungle city.
They moved to a concrete jungle city for work but missed the trees and quiet.
phrasefixed phrasefigurative
A place where life is tough, competitive, and dominated by modern urban problems.
Grammar: Often used in descriptions of social or economic struggle; usually singular with 'the'.
Patterns
- in a concrete jungle city
- survive in a concrete jungle city
- the concrete jungle city of something
Many young people arrive in the concrete jungle city hoping to make money fast.
The novel paints the concrete jungle city as beautiful and cruel at the same time.
In a concrete jungle city, it is easy to feel invisible.
Word forms
| plural | concrete jungle cities |
|---|
Common combinations
- a concrete jungle city
- He described his hometown as a concrete jungle city with no parks.
- the concrete jungle city of
- The concrete jungle city of glass and steel never seemed to sleep.
- escape the concrete jungle city
- They go camping every summer to escape the concrete jungle city.
- a sprawling concrete jungle city
- It is a sprawling concrete jungle city of ten million people.
- concrete jungle cities
- Concrete jungle cities are often hotter than nearby countryside.
Synonyms and how they differ
- urban sprawl
- This focuses on the spread of city development rather than the feeling of a harsh, gray city.
- metropolis
- This is a neutral, factual word for a very large city and does not carry the negative image.
- inner city
- This refers specifically to the older central part of a city, often with social problems, not the whole city.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: concrete jungle city or concrete jungle?
concrete jungle city vs concrete jungle
'Concrete jungle' alone is the common phrase; 'concrete jungle city' adds 'city' for clarity, but it is less idiomatic.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase most naturally?
Choose one answer.
The phrase describes a city full of buildings and activity, so sentence B fits. An and C treat it as a physical object, and D describes countryside, not a city.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “concrete jungle city”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.