Definition of polis Polis
/powˈlʌs/ - [powlus] - pol•is
We found 4 definitions of polis from 2 different sources.
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What does polis mean?
Wiktionary 
- polis (Noun)
A city, or a city-state. - polis (Noun)
The police. - polis (Noun)
A policeman or policewoman.
Wikipedia 
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A polis (πόλις) means a city, a city-state and also citizenship and body of citizens. In context with Ancient Greece "polis" means nearly always "city-state."
The word originates from the ancient Greek city-states, which developed during the Archaic period and existed well into Roman times, when the equivalent Latin word was "civitas", that means 'citizenhood' as well.
History.
The bounds of the ancient "polis" often centered around a citadel, called the "acropolis". Nearly always it had an "agora" (market) and typically one or more temples and a "gymnasium". Many of a "polis citizens did not live in the central city but in the suburbs or countryside. The Greeks regarded the "polis" as a religious and political association: while the "polis" would control territory and colonies beyond the city itself, the "polis" would not simply consist of a geographical area.
Words coming from "polis".
There are a lot of words in many modern European languages that come from "polis". In English there are policy, polity, police and politics. In Greek, words coming from "polis" include "politēs" and "politismos".
