How are a village, town and city distinguished from each other?
In sociological terms, a village and a city are distinguished by their social organisation, administrative factors like population density and the proportion of agriculture and its allied economic activities.
Villages emerged as part of the major changes in social structure which was brought by the transition from nomadic life to a more settled form of life. They are traditionally dependent upon agriculture and other primary activities for income. They also have lower density of population. In comparison, towns and cities have higher population density and are more dependent upon industries for income.
The difference between a city and a town is based upon their size. A city is similar to a town, except that it is much larger in size and area.