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Mediterranean

[ med-i-tuh-rey-nee-uhn ]

noun

  1. a person whose physical characteristics are considered typical of the peoples native to or inhabiting the Mediterranean area.
  2. the, Informal. the islands and countries of the Mediterranean Sea collectively.


adjective

  1. pertaining to, situated on or near, or dwelling about the Mediterranean Sea.
  2. pertaining to or characteristic of the peoples native to the lands along or near the Mediterranean Sea.
  3. surrounded or nearly surrounded by land.

Mediterranean

/ ˌmɛdɪtəˈreɪnɪən /

noun

  1. short for the Mediterranean Sea
  2. a native or inhabitant of a Mediterranean country


adjective

  1. of, relating to, situated or dwelling on or near the Mediterranean Sea
  2. denoting a postulated subdivision of the Caucasoid race, characterized by slender build and dark complexion
  3. meteorol (of a climate) characterized by hot summers and relatively warm winters when most of the annual rainfall occurs
  4. obsolete.
    often not capital situated in the middle of a landmass; inland

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Other Words From

  • non-Med·i·ter·rane·an noun adjective
  • trans-Med·i·ter·rane·an adjective

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Word History and Origins

Origin of Mediterranean1

1585–95; < Latin mediterrāne ( us ) midland, inland ( medium, terra, -an, -eous ) + -an

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Word History and Origins

Origin of Mediterranean1

C16: from Latin mediterrāneus, from medius middle + -terrāneus, from terra land, earth

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Example Sentences

The city served as a crossroads for African, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern cultures.

“We cannot allow the Mediterranean to become a vast cemetery,” he said.

Europe no longer wants to rescue migrants in the Mediterranean.

Without a dedicated and proactive rescue force, campaigners fear, the death toll in the Mediterranean will skyrocket.

Libyans are by and large charming, charismatic, humorous people with a Mediterranean joie de vivre.

The countries about the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea and its adjoining waters.

The view from the sea-side may be somewhat better, but not much—not comparable to that of Genoa from the Mediterranean.

Africa has one such, though it is north of the centre, and extends to the shores of the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.

In Europe it extended to the Alpine region, but failed to reach the countries bordering on the Mediterranean.

And then he went off into a long description of the great Temple of Fortune on the shores of the Mediterranean.

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meditativeMediterranean climate