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• Shangri-la
  Shangri-la

  noun

  an imaginary paradise on earth, especially a remote and exotic utopia.
• Shangri-La
  Shangri-La

  A fictional land of peace and perpetual youth; the setting for the 1933 novel Lost Horizon by the English author James Hilton, but probably best known from the movie versions. Shangri-La is supposedly in the mountains of Tibet.

Shangri-la

American  

[shang-gruh-lah, shang-gruh-lah] / ˈʃæŋ grəˌlɑ, ˌʃæŋ grəˈlɑ /

noun

1. an imaginary paradise on earth, especially a remote and exotic utopia.

2. a faraway haven or hideaway of idyllic beauty and tranquility.

   Last summer we rented a cottage on a little lake—our perfect Shangri-la.

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Shangri-la British  

/ ˌʃæŋɡrɪˈlɑː /

noun

1. a remote or imaginary utopia

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Shangri-La Cultural  

1. A fictional land of peace and perpetual youth; the setting for the 1933 novel Lost Horizon by the English author James Hilton, but probably best known from the movie versions. Shangri-La is supposedly in the mountains of Tibet.

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Discover More

A “Shangri-La,” by extension, is an ideal refuge from the troubles of the world.

Etymology

Origin of Shangri-la

After the fictional Tibetan land of eternal youth in the novel The Lost Horizon (1933) by James Hilton

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Shangri-la Shangri-La

He was addressing top Asian military officials at the Shangri-la Dialogue, a high-level defence summit held annually in Singapore.

From BBC ● May 31, 2025

This house is Harlan’s Shangri-la, a place where a man who made his own rules lived.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2024

"Ratched" was a bomb, but the psychiatric hospital where Sarah Paulson's wicked nurse worked was an interior designer's Shangri-la.

From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2023

Beijing has also refused requests from the U.S. for a face-to-face meeting between the defense chiefs of both countries during the June 2-4 Shangri-la Dialogue security forum in Singapore.

From Washington Times ● May 31, 2023

He owned a horse, which he kept in a little corral at the rear of his half-acre Shangri-la.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols

The Camp David property - set deep in Catoctin Mountain Park in Frederick County, Maryland - was first taken over as a retreat by President Franklin Roosevelt, who nicknamed it "Shangri-La".

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Today, there are at least 300 costume photography studios in Shangri-La, a city of fewer than 200,000 people.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stunned U.S. adversaries and allies at this year’s Shangri-La Dialogue of defense officials in Singapore.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 1, 2026

The Shangri-La Dialogue is Asia's top defence forum, bringing together security officials and experts from more than 45 countries.

From Barron's ● May 31, 2026

Enormous portraits of lost cities line the walls, with plaques revealing their names as Shangri-La, Avalon, and Shambhala.

From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston

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