Sumatra

American  

[soo-mah-truh] / sʊˈmɑ trə /

noun

1. a large island in the W part of Indonesia. 164,147 sq. mi. (425,141 sq. km).

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Sumatra British  

/ sʊˈmɑːtrə /

noun

1. Indonesian spellling: Sumatera. a mountainous island in W Indonesia, in the Greater Sunda Islands, separated from the Malay Peninsula by the Strait of Malacca: Dutch control began in the 16th century; joined Indonesia in 1945. Northern coastal areas, esp Aceh province, suffered devastation as a result of the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004. Pop: 42 409 510 (2000). Area: 473 606 sq km (182 821 sq miles)

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Sumatra Cultural  

1. Island in Indonesia in the Indian Ocean northwest of Java and west of Malaysia.

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Discover More

Though much of the island is covered by swampland and impenetrable rain forest, Sumatra's industries — including oil, coal, gold, silver, rubber, timber, and tobacco — produce over half of Indonesia's income.

Other Word Forms

• Sumatran
  adjective

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Sumatra

Many pointed particularly to an inability to put out the fires that have ravaged vast swaths of Borneo and Sumatra islands since July.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026

El Nino has been associated with strong drought in Indonesia, where tracts of forest and plantations have been burning in biodiverse Borneo and South Sumatra for months.

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

Experts also point to slash-and-burn land-clearing practices that have changed the naturally fire-resistant landscape of Sumatra and Borneo islands.

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

The air on the islands of Kalimantan and Sumatra have turned an ominous amber, with air quality recorded at hazardous levels.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

The last supervolcano eruption on Earth was at Toba, in northern Sumatra, seventy-four thousand years ago.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

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