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• continental
  continental

  adjective

  of or of the nature of a continent.
• Continental
  Continental

  adjective

  of or characteristic of Europe, excluding the British Isles

continental

American  

[kon-tn-en-tl] / ˌkɒn tnˈɛn tl /

adjective

1. of or of the nature of a continent.

2. (usually initial capital letter) of or relating to the mainland of Europe, to Europeans, or to European customs and attitudes.

3. (initial capital letter) of or relating to the 13 original American colonies during and immediately after the American Revolution.

4. of or relating to the continent of North America.

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noun

1. (initial capital letter) a soldier of the Continental Army in the American Revolution.

2. a piece of paper currency issued by the Continental Congress during the American Revolution.

3. a small amount.

   advice that's not worth a continental.

4. an inhabitant of a continent.

5. (usually initial capital letter) an inhabitant of the mainland of Europe.

Continental British  

/ ˌkɒntɪˈnɛntəl /

adjective

1. of or characteristic of Europe, excluding the British Isles

2. of or relating to the 13 original British North American colonies during and immediately after the War of American Independence

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noun

1. (sometimes not capital) an inhabitant of Europe, excluding the British Isles

2. a regular soldier of the rebel army during the War of American Independence

3. history a currency note issued by the Continental Congress

Other Word Forms

• Continentalism
  noun
• Continentalist
  noun
• continentally
  adverb
• noncontinental
  adjective
• precontinental
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of continental

First recorded in 1750–60; continent + -al ¹

Example Sentences

Arsenal have a chance to become European champions for the first time and could even do the continental double as they are also top of the Premier League.

From BBC • May 6, 2026

With continental inflation tame, the European Central Bank looked to be headed prewar toward interest rates too low for lenders to earn healthy margins.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

The Kaiserslautern Military Community, which includes Ramstein, is the largest outside the continental U.S. and counts more than 50,000 members, including 18,000 soldiers, as well as civilian staff and families.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026

The team also uncovered signs of an earlier rifting episode that did not lead to a full continental split.

From Science Daily • Apr. 25, 2026

In 1950, a vote at the annual meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science showed that about half of those present now embraced the idea of continental drift.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

Related Words

• global
• multicultural