All five boroughs make up NY City - right? So, what do you locals call it, Manhattan or NY City?

I call it THE CITY

That exactly what I call San Francisco.;-)

I call Brooklyn, Brooklyn; Staten Is., Staten Island; Queens, is simply Queens; Bronx is the Bronx; but Manhattan IS THE CITY ;-)

We have always referred to NYC as
"going into the City"
to work, see a play, etc.

I will sometimes clarify to folks that I work in Manhattan.

'One WanderingJew' states it correctly; that's how all NYC locals refer to the various bouroughs.
I think there is less agreement on what people call Nassau & Suffolk counties; generally, the 2 suburban counties are referred to as 'Long Island', or just 'the Island'( although a small bunch of people consider the Fire Island as 'the island')
Technically, the boroughs of Queens and Brooklyn are ON Long Island, but when people say they live on Long Island, they really mean either Nassau or Suffolk counties.

I call it "Manhattan" to those I perceive to be locals and call the other boroughs by name if needed, "the City" to those from New York State but not from the five boroughs and "New York City" to those that I perceive to be not from the area.

I call Manhattan "the City," and refer to the other boroughs by their regular names.

Interesting to note the observations. I'm a native of Syracuse NY - the central part of the state. IN this area people generally say "New York City" or "New York" and are typically referring to Manhattan. If I meet someone who is really from NYC (i.e. they grew up there), when asked where they're from the response will usally mention the borough by name (e.g. I'm from the Bronx).

When I was in college in the Hudson Valley, people who said "I'm from 'the City' were more often than not poseurs who were from some borough other than Manhattan. Those who were from Manhattan would respond with what part of Manhattan they were from without bothering to mention Manhattan by name (e.g. Central Park West).

More amusing to me has been my experience traveling to the western states. If I tell people I'm from "New York state", more often than not it's interpreted as meaning urban and in NYC. I like the line from a local comic who decided to just say "I'm from 'up near Vermont' when asked where he came from. It's actually the best possible description of what much of NY state is like when one gets out of "the City"!

Thanks for telling me exactly what I wanted to know.

I live in San Francisco (The City), When we travel, both domestically and abroad, and people ask where we are from and we say S.F., they almost always ask what city exactly. They always seem to be surprised that we actually live in the city itself. For obvious reasons, most people that live in the Bay Area, or reasonably close, respond that they live in San Francisco to clerify the area, as most people wouldn't know the smaller cities by name. "You don't really live IN San Francisco, where do you actually live?" is usually how they respond. I guess it is the same whether you say NYC, Los Angeles, etc...

I'm from the Bronx and live in Manhattan. If you are in the Bronx you would refer to Manhattan as "downtown" - example: I'm going downtown. He works downtown etc. You might also say Manhattan ("the City" is more of a Brooklyn, SI and suburban term) If someone from outside NYC asks where I live I'd say "New York", or if they were from the NY area I'd say "the City" but if someone from NYC asks me where I live I'd say Manhattan.

Though I technically live in NYC (Brooklyn) I always say I'm going "into the City" when I head into Manhattan.

People who live in Manhattan don't call Manhattan "the City." People who live in New Jersey and other boroughs (tho apparently not the Bronx?) call Manhattan "the City."

I live in Manhattan, and somebody esle here is right, if I am asked where I live I say, "New York." Actually in Europe people seem to know what I mean (or maybe don't know I could mean anything else!). In the rest of the U.S. I re-learn after a few conversations to say I live in "New York City."

(As it is called by my relatives in New Jersey, as in the statement, "Oh, I would NEVER go to New York City by mySELF!!!")

>>Message: People who live in Manhattan don't call Manhattan "the City." People who live in New Jersey and other boroughs (tho apparently not the Bronx?) call Manhattan "the City."

No, people in the Bronx say "the city", too.

I grew up in the Bronx, Nordica, and we usually did not call Manhattan 'the City', we either said "I'm going to Manhattan" or "I'm going downtown", so at least in my experience, Elizabeth is right. I do understand though that Manhattan is referred to as 'the City' a lot more in Queens and Brooklyn (lived in Queens for 9 years and currently live in Brooklyn).

I live and work in Manhattan. I notice at work that when someone gets asked where they live, the Manhattanites usually reply with their neighborhood (as Owen said), like the Upper West Side, the outer borough livers reply with their borough, and the NY suburban folks mention their county (Orange, Rockland, etc). Long Islanders and New Jerseyites sometimes mention their town, sometimes only the area (North Shore, Northern NJ).

The "City" means Manhattan. I call the rest of NYC "The Boroughs".