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A metropolitan area usually combines an agglomeration (the contiguous built-up area) with peripheral zones not themselves necessarily urban in character but closely bound to the centre by employment or commerce; these zones are also sometimes known as a commuter belt, and may extend well beyond the urban periphery depending on the definition used.

The core cities in a polycentric metropolitan area need not be physically connected by continuous built-up development, distinguishing the concept from conurbation, which requires urban contiguity. In an MA, it is sufficient that central cities together constitute a large population nucleus with which other constituent parts have a high degree of integration.

The term metropolitan area is sometimes abbreviated to 'metro', for example in Metro Manila and Washington, DC Metro Area, and then should not be mistaken to mean the metro rail system of the city. In France the official term for a metropolitan area is an aire urbaine.

In Japan, individual cities form metropolitan areas or conurbations such as the capital zone of Tokyo- Kawasaki- Yokohama (the Keihin area) or Osaka- Kobe, with which Kyoto is sometimes included as part of the wider Keihan zone.

If several metropolitan areas are located in succession, metropolitan areas are sometimes grouped together as a megalopolis. A megalopolis consists of several interconnected cities (and their suburbs), between which people commute, and which are so close together that suburbs can claim to be suburbs of more than one city.

This concept was first proposed by the French geographer Jean Gottmann in his book Megalopolis, who studied the northeastern United States. One famous example is the BosWashThe BosWash megalopolis is the name for a group of metropolitan areas in the northeastern United States, extending from Boston to Washington and linked by economics, transport, and communications. The geographic trend was first identified in the 1961 book megalopolisMegalopolis ( Greek: large city, great city) can mean: the city of Megalopolis, Greece any large metropolitan area. consisting of Boston, HartfordHartford is the capital of the state of Connecticut, in Hartford County. It is located on the Connecticut River, near the center of the state. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city was 121,578. It is the second largest city in the state, after, New York CitySkyline, with Statue of Liberty New York, New York" redirects here. For alternate meanings, see New York, New York (disambiguation). New York — officially named City of New York and often called New York City to distinguish it from the state of New York,, Philadelphia, BaltimoreThis article is about the city in the US state of Maryland. For other meanings of the word "Baltimore", please see: Baltimore (disambiguation Baltimore is an independent city located in the U. State of Maryland. As of July 1, 2002, the population is 638,6, WashingtonWashington, DC officially the District of Columbia (also known as DC Washington and, historically, the Federal City is the capital city and administrative district of the United States of America. Residents of the city and its surrounding suburbs refer to, and vicinity. Other megalopolitan zones are Tokyo and Osaka, the Ruhr Area and parts of the Low Countries. Africa's first megalopolis is situated in the urban portion of Gauteng Province in South Africa, comprising the conurbation of Johannesburg, and the metropolitan areas of Pretoria and the Vaal Triangle, otherwise known as the PWV. It has been suggested that the whole of south-eastern, Midland and parts of northern England will evolve into a megalopolis dominated by London.