Alaska

American  

[uh-las-kuh] / əˈlæs kə /

noun

1. a state of the United States in northwestern North America. 586,400 sq. mi. (1,519,000 sq. km). Juneau. AK (for use with zip code), Alas.

2. Gulf of Alaska, a gulf of the Pacific Ocean, on the coast of southern Alaska.

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Alaska British  

/ əˈlæskə /

noun

1. Abbreviation: Alas.   AK.  the largest state of the US, in the extreme northwest of North America: the aboriginal inhabitants are Inuit and Yupik; the earliest White settlements were made by the Russians; it was purchased by the US from Russia in 1867. It is mostly mountainous and volcanic, rising over 6000 m (20 000 ft), with the Yukon basin in the central region; large areas are covered by tundra; it has important mineral resources (chiefly coal, oil, and natural gas). Capital: Juneau. Pop: 648 818 (2003 est). Area: 1 530 694 sq km (591 004 sq miles)

2. the N part of the Pacific, between the Alaska Peninsula and the Alexander Archipelago

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Alaska Cultural  

1. State in northwesternmost North America bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north; Yukon, Canada, to the east; the Pacific Ocean to the south; and the Bering Sea to the west. Its capital is Juneau, and its largest city is Anchorage.

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Discover More

The forty-ninth state, admitted in 1959, and the largest.

Other Word Forms

• Alaskan adjective

Compare meaning

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

• Alaska vs. Hawaii

Example Sentences

In Alaska, the first decades after U.S. rule brought disruption and hardship for indigenous people, including a loss of rights to land and resources.

From The Wall Street Journal

“It was hard to listen to some of the president’s comments about Greenland,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican from Alaska at Davos for her first time, in a phone interview on Friday.

From The Wall Street Journal

CSX and Alaska Air Group report earnings after the closing bell Thursday.

From Barron's

NATO, with a collective population of roughly one billion, covers territory from Alaska to the Black Sea, and commanders drill constantly so that they can “fight tonight,” as they put it.

From The Wall Street Journal

We excluded Hawaiian Airlines because of its regional focus, but its results will be included in merger partner Alaska’s ranking for 2026.

From The Wall Street Journal