American
Americanadjective
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of or relating to the United States of America or its inhabitants.
an American citizen.
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of or relating to North or South America; of the Western Hemisphere.
the American continents.
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of or relating to the Indigenous peoples of North and South America.
noun
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a citizen of the United States of America.
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a native or inhabitant of North or South America.
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an Indigenous person of North or South America.
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a steam locomotive having a four-wheeled front truck, four driving wheels, and no rear truck.
adjective
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of or relating to the United States of America, its inhabitants, or their form of English
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of or relating to the American continent
noun
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a native or citizen of the US
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a native or inhabitant of any country of North, Central, or South America
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the English language as spoken or written in the United States
Other Word Forms
- Americanly adverb
- Americanness noun
Etymology
Origin of American
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Asking for a friend, who notes as of this writing they were tied for worst record in the American League.
From Los Angeles Times • May 2, 2026
Piker addressed it at the time — acknowledging it as a hyperbolic critique of American foreign policy and saying he should have used more precise language.
From Salon • May 2, 2026
The PGA Tour set up a returning member programme, which was open until 2 February, and accepted Brooks Koepka back on the American circuit as part of the initiative following his departure from LIV Golf.
From BBC • May 2, 2026
But, as Shane Shifflett and Hannah Critchfield write in their piece this week, the data and location of American citizens is also being collected.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026
There’s this story from the American Revolution where a British spy is caught sneaking through American lines.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
