Mecca

American  

[mek-uh] / ˈmɛk ə /

noun

1. Also Mekka; Makkah a city in and the capital of Hejaz, in western Saudi Arabia: birthplace of Muhammad; spiritual center of Islam.

2. (often lowercase)  any place that many people visit or hope to visit.

   The president's birthplace is a mecca for his admirers.

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Mecca British  

/ ˈmɛkə /

noun

1. Arabic name: Makkah.  a city in W Saudi Arabia, joint capital (with Riyadh) of Saudi Arabia: birthplace of Mohammed; the holiest city of Islam, containing the Kaaba. Pop: 1 529 000 (2005 est)

2. (sometimes not capital) a place that attracts many visitors

   Athens is a Mecca for tourists

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Mecca ¹ Cultural  

1. The birthplace of Muhammad, and thus the holiest city for Muslims. Muslims face in the direction of Mecca when they pray, and they are expected to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lives. Mecca is in present-day Saudi Arabia.

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Mecca ² Cultural  

1. City in western Saudi Arabia.

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Discover More

Figuratively, a “mecca” is any place that attracts a great many people, especially for a particular reason: “Vail is a mecca for skiers.”

As the place where Mohammed the prophet was born in the sixth century, it is the holiest city of Islam and the destination of numerous Muslim pilgrims.

A “mecca” is a place that attracts people: “Hollywood is a mecca for would-be actors and actresses.”

Other Word Forms

• Meccan adjective

Example Sentences

Fred dreams of beating his annual sales goal and earning a trip to Palm Springs, Calif., a place he reveres “the way others may have felt about Canterbury or Jerusalem or Mecca.”

From The Wall Street Journal

The pilgrims were travelling from the Islamic holy city of Mecca to Medina when the accident took place, the Telangana government said in a statement.

From BBC

They called it Mecca, and every week, they came to the same stretch of levee next to an abandoned warehouse where Mardi Gras floats were once built.

From Los Angeles Times

Indeed, the two countries share a resilient relationship rooted in defence ties - from Pakistani troop deployments in the 1960s to commandos helping quell the 1979 Mecca mosque siege.

From BBC

"It is a Mecca of sport in my eyes," adds wing Harry Potter, who moved from England to Melbourne as a 10-year-old.

From BBC