Alaska

American  

[uh-las-kuh] / əˈlæs kə /

noun

1. a state of the United States in northwestern North America. 586,400 sq. mi. (1,519,000 sq. km). Juneau. AK (for use with zip code), Alas.

2. Gulf of Alaska, a gulf of the Pacific Ocean, on the coast of southern Alaska.

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Alaska British  

/ əˈlæskə /

noun

1. Abbreviation: Alas, AK. the largest state of the US, in the extreme northwest of North America: the aboriginal inhabitants are Inuit and Yupik; the earliest White settlements were made by the Russians; it was purchased by the US from Russia in 1867. It is mostly mountainous and volcanic, rising over 6000 m (20 000 ft), with the Yukon basin in the central region; large areas are covered by tundra; it has important mineral resources (chiefly coal, oil, and natural gas). Capital: Juneau. Pop: 648 818 (2003 est). Area: 1 530 694 sq km (591 004 sq miles)

2. the N part of the Pacific, between the Alaska Peninsula and the Alexander Archipelago

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Alaska Cultural  

1. State in northwesternmost North America bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north; Yukon, Canada, to the east; the Pacific Ocean to the south; and the Bering Sea to the west. Its capital is Juneau, and its largest city is Anchorage.

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Discover More

The forty-ninth state, admitted in 1959, and the largest.

Other Word Forms

• Alaskan
  adjective

Compare meaning

How does alaska compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Alaska vs. Hawaii

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Alaska

SEOUL—At a Wednesday announcement at the Oval Office, President Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and top Alaskan officials announced a roughly $50 billion investment by the South Korean government into an Alaska liquefied-natural-gas pipeline.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

Backpack, a 20-year-old male beloved by rangers in Alaska for his quiet determination, edged out female fellow finalist Dancing Queen in the annual ursine eating competition at Katmai National Park.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

King was a contract helicopter pilot from Alaska and lived in Palmer with his wife, according to ABC30.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026

The chunky champion narrowly beat Bear 910 by 103,344 votes to 98,253 in the final round of the online contest run by Katmai National Park in Alaska.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

The passenger jet had left Seoul earlier that day, bound for Anchorage, Alaska, and had deviated off course into Soviet airspace.

From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau