Oregon

American  

[awr-i-guhn, ‑-gon, or‑] / ˈɔr ɪ gən, ‑ˌgɒn, ˈɒr‑ /

noun

1. a state in the northwestern United States, on the Pacific coast. 96,981 square miles (251,180 square kilometers). Salem. OR (for use with zip code), Oreg., Ore.

2. a city in northwestern Ohio.

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Oregon British  

/ ˈɒrɪɡən /

noun

1. Abbreviation: Oreg..   OR.  a state of the northwestern US, on the Pacific: consists of the Coast and Cascade Ranges in the west and a plateau in the east; important timber production. Capital: Salem. Pop: 3 559 596 (2003 est). Area: 251 418 sq km (97 073 sq miles)

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Oregon Cultural  

1. State in the northwestern United States bordered by Washington to the north, Idaho to the east, Nevada and California to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Its capital is Salem, and its largest city is Portland.

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Discover More

Before the coming of the railroads, the Oregon Trail was used as an overland emigration route from the Missouri River to the Columbia River country (all of which was then called Oregon).

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• Oregonian
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of Oregon

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Thick hair, tattoos, darker pigmentation or aggressive movement can trip up sensors, says John Schuna, associate professor of kinesiology at Oregon State University.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 7, 2026

And, in the case of University of Oregon wide receiver Dakorien Moore, that amounted to upward of $80,000.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 6, 2026

To ground this heavy computational architecture in environmental responsibility, the Large Nature Model is hosted by a dedicated Google Cloud server cluster in Oregon running on 87% carbon-free renewable energy.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2026

The 1990 graduate of South Hills High was passionate about learning the game, walked on to the golf team at the University of Oregon and eventually earned a scholarship.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 3, 2026

It isn’t even an inch, but in this part of Oregon a slight dusting brings everything to a standstill as the one snowplow in the county gets busy clearing the roads.

From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman