Phnom Penh

American  

[nom pen, puh-nawm pen] / ˈnɒm ˈpɛn, pəˈnɔm ˈpɛn /

Or Pnom Penh,

noun

1. a city in and the capital of Cambodia, in the S part.

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Phnom Penh British  

/ ˌpnɒm ˈpɛn /

noun

1. Official transliteration: Phnum Péhn.  the capital of Cambodia, a port in the south at the confluence of the Mekong and Tonle Sap Rivers: capital of the country since 1865; university (1960). Pop: 1 174 000 (2005 est)

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Example Sentences

Volker Turk, the United Nations' high commissioner for human rights, said he we "deeply concerned by the upholding of the conviction" by the Phnom Penh appeals court on Thursday.

From Barron's • May 1, 2026

Like Xu, the sanctioned developer of the Phnom Penh skyscraper, Chen was an émigré from China and a naturalized Cambodian citizen.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 20, 2026

We spoke to him from the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh, where he is now being sheltered by a charity and trying to find a way to get back to Uganda.

From BBC • Apr. 6, 2026

Lines that stretched for more than a block also formed outside the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh earlier in January.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 31, 2026

They come to Phnom Penh to escape the Khmer Rouge, who still control parts of the countryside.

From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung