Britain

American  

[brit-n] / ˈbrɪt n /

noun

1. Great Britain.

2. Britannia.

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Britain British  

/ ˈbrɪtən /

noun

1. another name for Great Britain United Kingdom

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Britain Cultural  

1. Officially the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, located on the British Isles off the western coast of the mainland (continent) of Europe. It comprises England, Wales, and Scotland on the island of Great Britain, and Northern Ireland on the island of Ireland. Its capital and largest city is London.

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It is one of the world's leading industrialized nations.

Most of the settlers of the American colonies were British. The colonies remained under the British crown until the American Revolutionary War.

Britain declared war on Germany in 1939. Allied with the United States and the Soviet Union, the British, under the leadership of Winston Churchill, played an important role in defeating Germany.

At the height of its imperial power in the late nineteenth century, Britain boasted colonies and possessions around the globe. (See British Empire.)

A constitutional monarchy, Britain's government calls for the hereditary king or queen to perform mostly ceremonial functions. Parliament governs the country.

Compare meaning

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

• Britain vs. Great Britain
• Britain vs. England

Example Sentences

The companies cited uncompetitive drug-pricing controls that mean Britain spends far less on medicines than its peers.

From The Wall Street Journal

Kitchener later served as Secretary of State for War and was instrumental in expanding Britain’s army to wage a prolonged struggle of attrition in Europe.

From The Wall Street Journal

The agreement means Britain will be exempted from hefty US tariffs imposed on pharma imports that entered force on October 1.

From Barron's

In the early 1990s, Hayes hosted BBC Radio 2's breakfast show for a year - ultimately being replaced by Terry Wogan - then moved to the Sony Award-winning weekly phone-in, Hayes Over Britain.

From BBC

Britain's government said Monday it was withdrawing financial support for a gas project in Mozambique that French firm TotalEnergies is aiming to resume after suspending it following a jihadist attack.

From Barron's