britain
noun
Simple meaning
England, Scotland and Wales in combination.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
brituhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈbɹɪtən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
loosely
The United Kingdom, a kingdom and country in Northern Europe including the island of Great Britain as well as Northern Ireland on the northeastern portion of the island of Ireland.
Great Britain, a large island (sometimes also including some of the surrounding smaller islands) off the north-west coast of Western Europe, made up of England, Scotland, and Wales; especially (but not exclusively) during antiquity.
England, Scotland and Wales in combination.
A monarchy in northwestern Europe occupying most of the British Isles; divided into England and Scotland and Wales and Northern Ireland; `Great Britain' is often used loosely to refer to the United Kingdom
in the plural
The British Isles.
in the plural
The British Empire.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Share your sentence
Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Tap the highlighted word to open its own entry.
Similar Words, What’s the Difference?
Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801–1922).
The United Kingdom, a kingdom and country in Northern Europe including the island of Great Britain as well as Northern….
A kingdom and country in Northern Europe, comprising the four countries of England, Scotland and Wales on the island of….
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
The prolonged bombardment of British cities by the German Luftwaffe during World War II and the aerial combat that accompanied it.
A monarchy in northwestern Europe occupying most of the British Isles.
The sovereign ruler of England.
The largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago.
A monarchy in northwestern Europe occupying most of the British Isles.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: united Kingdom
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Keep learning “britain” by choosing the kind of practice you need next.
- Practice sentence writingWrite sentences with vocabulary and get instant feedback.
- Practice in contextAnswer short vocabulary questions drawn from real situations.
- Review vocabularyTest your recall and strengthen words over time.
- Practice typingType vocabulary in short rounds that draw from words you've learned and saved.
Want to type words like this one without looking at the keyboard? Each typing round draws from words you've learned, saved or need to review. Follow the free Learn to Type lessons and type your own vocabulary with confidence.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.