Australia

American  

[aw-strayl-yuh] / ɔˈstreɪl jə /

noun

1. a continent southeast of Asia, between the Indian and Pacific Oceans. 2,948,366 square miles (7,636,270 square kilometers).

2. Commonwealth of Australia, a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, consisting of the federated states and territories of Australia and Tasmania. 2,974,581 square miles (7,704,165 square kilometers). Canberra.

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Australia British  

/ ɒˈstreɪlɪə /

noun

1. a country and the smallest continent, situated between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific: a former British colony, now an independent member of the Commonwealth, constitutional links with Britain formally abolished in 1986; consists chiefly of a low plateau, mostly arid in the west, with the basin of the Murray River and the Great Dividing Range in the east and the Great Barrier Reef off the NE coast. Official language: English. Religion: Christian majority. Currency: dollar. Capital: Canberra. Pop: 23 029 674 (2013 est). Area: 7 682 300 sq km (2 966 150 sq miles)

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Australia Cultural  

1. Nation occupying the whole of Australia, the smallest continent, between the Indian Ocean and the southwest Pacific Ocean. Its capital is Canberra, and its largest city is Sydney.

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Discover More

The first settlements there were penal colonies for British convicts.

Its aboriginal tribes, which still exist today (see aborigines), are thought to have migrated from Southeast Asia twenty thousand years ago.

Compare meaning

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

• Oceania vs. Australia

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Australia

From the U.S. to Europe and Australia, government agencies are seeing a sharp rise in requests for things like records or consumer complaints, presumably because chatbots have made it effortless to file forms.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026

Acts of political violence are rare in Australia, and Albanese told the national broadcaster he wanted the country to remain a place where lawmakers can engage with people, go shopping, and watch football.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026

In contrast to McDermott, England women's coach Stuart Barrow has made a big selection change before their blockbuster meeting with co-hosts Australia on Saturday.

From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026

In South Africa's ongoing Test against Australia in Gqeberha, the tourists have omitted Nathan Lyon despite the off-spinner sitting sixth on the all-time list of Test wicket-takers with 573.

From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026

Why did agricultural revolutions erupt in the Middle East, China and Central America but not in Australia, Alaska or South Africa?

From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

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