metropolitan county or metropolitan district noun
A county or district in a heavily-populated industrial area of England, the district running more, and the county fewer, public services than other districts or counties
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Main Entry: ↑metropolis
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each of six new administrative areas of Britain created in 1974. These were formed from large city areas which were separated from the counties they were formerly in. They are ↑Greater Manchester, ↑Merseyside, ↑Tyne and Wear, ↑West Midlands, ↑South Yorkshire and ↑West Yorkshire. Each one was divided into ten districts and there were two systems of local government, county councils and ↑district councils. In 1986, this system changed. County councils were abolished, leaving only district councils responsible for each district within the metropolitan counties.
See also ↑unitary authority
Useful english dictionary. 2012.