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brazil

1 American  
[bruh-zil] / brəˈzɪl /

noun

  1. brazilwood.


Brazil 2 American  
[bruh-zil] / brəˈzɪl /

noun

  1. a republic in South America. 3,286,170 sq. mi. (8,511,180 sq. km). Brasília.


Brazil 1 British  
/ brəˈzɪl /

noun

  1. a republic in South America, comprising about half the area and half the population of South America: colonized by the Portuguese from 1500 onwards; became independent in 1822 and a republic in 1889; consists chiefly of the tropical Amazon basin in the north, semiarid scrub in the northeast, and a vast central tableland; an important producer of coffee and minerals, esp iron ore. Official language: Portuguese. Religion: Roman Catholic majority. Currency: real. Capital: Brasília. Pop: 201 009 622 (2013 est). Area: 8 511 957 sq km (3 286 470 sq miles)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

brazil 2 British  
/ brəˈzɪl /

noun

  1. Also called: brazil wood.  the red wood obtained from various tropical leguminous trees of the genus Caesalpinia , such as C. echinata of America: used for cabinetwork

  2. the red or purple dye extracted from any of these woods See also brazilin

  3. short for brazil nut

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Brazil Cultural  
  1. Republic in eastern South America. It borders on every South American country except Chile and Ecuador. Its capital is Brasilia, and its largest city is São Paulo.


Discover More

The only country in South America whose history was dominated by Portugal; it is the largest Portuguese-speaking country in the world.

The largest of the Latin-American countries, Brazil occupies almost half of South America.

It is the world's leading coffee exporter.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of brazil

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English brasile, from Medieval Latin, from Italian, from Spanish brasil, derivative of brasa “live coal” (the wood being red in color), from Germanic; see braise

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.

See Examples For:

Saquon Barkley made a dream debut for the Philadelphia Eagles as they beat the Green Bay Packers in the NFL's first ever trip to brazil.

From BBC Sep. 9, 2024

Before manufacturers could produce them artificially, reds came from minerals, bugs, plants: madder root, kermes, cochineal, brazil wood, cinnabar.

From Slate Aug. 12, 2019

Put the brazil nuts into another freezer bag and also bash them, so you end up with different-sized nut rubble.

From The Guardian Dec. 13, 2018

Teaching girls self defense classes might be wise, not just in brazil.

From New York Times Nov. 9, 2017

Biscuits 8 ozs. white flour, 2 ozs. ground rice, 3 ozs. sugar, 4 ozs. grated brazil kernels.

From No Animal Food and Nutrition and Diet with Vegetable Recipes by Wheldon, Rupert H.

From Mexico to northern Brazil, stretching from the Pacific coast to the Guiana Highlands, approximately 110 million people experienced their hottest July on record.

From Barron's Aug. 10, 2026

Its diet likely included smaller animals, suggesting that it played the role of a small predator in the Triassic ecosystems of southern Brazil.

From Science Daily Aug. 10, 2026

And in 2018, one wing of the Nation Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro burned down with the loss of many fossil specimens that were on display.

From Science Daily Aug. 7, 2026

Even before Washington entered the picture, Brazil was already set for one of its most tense elections in decades.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 5, 2026

From 1936 to 1939, he spied for the Nazis in Brazil and Argentina.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

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