British Isles

American  

plural noun

1. a group of islands in W Europe: Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, and adjacent small islands. 120,592 sq. mi. (312,300 sq. km).

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British Isles British  

plural noun

1. a group of islands in W Europe, consisting of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Orkney, Shetland, the Channel Islands belonging to Great Britain, and the islands adjacent to these

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British Isles Cultural  

1. The islands of Great Britain and Ireland and a number of smaller islands off their coasts.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

British Isles

The measure, which most sets apart the Jersey legislation from the rest of the British Isles, concerns the manner in which those eligible for an assisted death can end their lives.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

When it comes into law, which is expected in a few days' time, Jersey will be the first part of the British Isles where assisted dying is legalised.

From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026

This means Jersey will be the first place in the British Isles to legalise assisted dying, which means other nations will look closely at what Jersey has done.

From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026

Along my journey over my 30 years as a manager, I was made aware that this tradition was only really observed in the British Isles, and not in mainland Europe.

From BBC ● May 15, 2026

They were convinced that they could force Britain to abandon the war by disrupting Allied shipping before vessels could reach the British Isles.

From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman