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guinea
guineanouna former money of account of the United Kingdom, equal to 21 shillings: still often used in quoting fees or prices.
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Guinea
Guineanouna coastal region in western Africa, extending from the Gambia River to the Gabon estuary.
guinea
1 Americannoun
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a former money of account of the United Kingdom, equal to 21 shillings: still often used in quoting fees or prices.
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a gold coin of Great Britain issued from 1663 to 1813, with a nominal value of 20 shillings.
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Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a contemptuous term used to refer to a person of Italian birth or descent.
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Horse Racing. a person who does miscellaneous work in or around a horse stable.
noun
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a coastal region in western Africa, extending from the Gambia River to the Gabon estuary.
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Formerly French Guinea. an independent republic in western Africa, on the Atlantic coast. About 96,900 sq. mi. (251,000 sq. km). Conakry.
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Gulf of Guinea, a part of the Atlantic Ocean that projects into the western coast of Africa and extends from the Ivory Coast to Gabon.
noun
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a republic in West Africa, on the Atlantic: established as the colony of French Guinea in 1890 and became an independent republic in 1958. Official language: French. Religion: Muslim majority and animist. Currency: franc. Capital: Conakry. Pop: 11 176 026 (2013 est). Area: 245 855 sq km (94 925 sq miles)
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(formerly) the coastal region of West Africa, between Cape Verde and Namibe (formerly Moçâmedes; Angola): divided by a line of volcanic peaks into Upper Guinea (between The Gambia and Cameroon) and Lower Guinea (between Cameroon and S Angola)
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a large inlet of the S Atlantic on the W coast of Africa, extending from Cape Palmas, Liberia, to Cape Lopez, Gabon: contains two large bays, the Bight of Bonny and the Bight of Benin, separated by the Niger delta
noun
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a British gold coin taken out of circulation in 1813, worth 21 shillings
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the sum of 21 shillings (£1.05), still used in some contexts, as in quoting professional fees
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See guinea fowl
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slang an Italian or a person of Italian descent
Discover More
Guinea was once part of the Mali empire.
It became independent of France in 1958.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of guinea
C16: the coin was originally made of gold from Guinea
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said in a notice that tsunami waves were possible "within the next three hours" along the coasts of the Philippines, Indonesia, Palau, Taiwan and Papua New Guinea.
From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026
Equatorial Guinea has then held them without charge before deporting them to their countries of origin.
From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026
Some 32 people are thought to have been sent to Equatorial Guinea since last year, all Africans.
From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026
Northern Ireland play Guinea in an international friendly on 4 June before travelling to face France four days later as preparation for their upcoming Nations League campaign which starts in September.
From BBC • May 27, 2026
Like New Guinea, that area supported independent domestication of local wild plants.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.