American
Americanadjective
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of or relating to the United States of America or its inhabitants.
an American citizen.
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of or relating to North or South America; of the Western Hemisphere.
the American continents.
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of or relating to the Indigenous peoples of North and South America.
noun
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Americans
plural
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a citizen of the United States of America.
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a native or inhabitant of North or South America.
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an Indigenous person of North or South America.
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a steam locomotive having a four-wheeled front truck, four driving wheels, and no rear truck.
adjective
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of or relating to the United States of America, its inhabitants, or their form of English
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of or relating to the American continent
noun
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a native or citizen of the US
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a native or inhabitant of any country of North, Central, or South America
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the English language as spoken or written in the United States
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of American
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It is a chilling dynamic that keeps repeating itself in American culture, and one at the heart of “American Hostage,” a dramatic miniseries making its debut Sunday on MGM+.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
“This is the … physical counterpart of the capital spending recorded in the American accounts,” Cates adds.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026
“Warren’s impact on Berkshire and its owners is without parallel in the history of American business,” Berkshire Chief Executive Officer Greg Abel said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
American college football games were being played abroad long before the NFL headed overseas, in countries as diverse as Cuba, Japan and Tanzania.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
The American tanks position themselves near the gymnasium and the Education Building.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
For decades, most Americans felt like the FBI was a reliable law enforcement agency that could be counted on to solve crimes and protect us from some of the worst criminals.
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026
The Lebanese president has also called on Europeans, Americans and Arab nations to support the Lebanese army.
From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026
“If Americans want to buy products made in America, Amazon and Walmart should be helping them, not giving away their business to foreign knockoffs,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
And Asian Americans have extremely elevated rates of certain diseases, including tuberculosis and hepatitis B.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Although the Americans leave Manila in the hands of the Japanese—temporarily, at least—and the Propaganda Corps works tirelessly to disseminate their messages, the Imperial Japanese Army struggles in the first months of the occupation.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
