Dunkirk

American  

[duhn-kurk] / ˈdʌn kɜrk /

noun

1. French Dunkerque. a seaport in N France: site of the evacuation of a British expeditionary force of over 330,000 men under German fire May 29–June 4, 1940.

2. a period of crisis or emergency when drastic measures must be enforced.

   The smaller nations were facing a financial Dunkirk.

3. a city in W New York, on Lake Erie.

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Dunkirk Cultural  

1. The scene of a remarkable, though ignominious, retreat by the British army in World War II. Dunkirk, a town on the northern coast of France, was the last refuge of the British during the fall of France, and several hundred naval and civilian vessels took the troops back to England in shifts over three days.

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Discover More

The term Dunkirk is sometimes used to signify a desperate retreat.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Dunkirk

It is after arriving at the largest settlement at Loon-Plage, near Dunkirk, that we soon find ourselves in direct confrontation with the people smugglers.

From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026

Gravelines, one of the country's biggest nuclear power stations located between Dunkirk and Calais in the Hauts-de-France region, was also closed last August because of jellyfish in its filters.

From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026

The first three data centres would be at Dunkirk and near the northern cities of Cambrai and Amiens, he added.

From Barron's ● May 30, 2026

It will also work with French energy-technology company Schneider Electric to build facilities to make components for the data centers near the port city of Dunkirk in the north of the country.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 30, 2026

From their entrenchments along the Aisne River, the Germans had advanced northward toward the French ports of Dunkirk and Calais on the English Channel.

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

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