Australia

American  

[aw-streyl-yuh] / ɔˈstreɪl jə /

noun

1. a continent southeast of Asia, between the Indian and Pacific Oceans. 2,948,366 square miles (7,636,270 square kilometers).

2. Commonwealth of Australia, a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, consisting of the federated states and territories of Australia and Tasmania. 2,974,581 square miles (7,704,165 square kilometers). Canberra.

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Australia British  

/ ɒˈstreɪlɪə /

noun

1. a country and the smallest continent, situated between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific: a former British colony, now an independent member of the Commonwealth, constitutional links with Britain formally abolished in 1986; consists chiefly of a low plateau, mostly arid in the west, with the basin of the Murray River and the Great Dividing Range in the east and the Great Barrier Reef off the NE coast. Official language: English. Religion: Christian majority. Currency: dollar. Capital: Canberra. Pop: 23 029 674 (2013 est). Area: 7 682 300 sq km (2 966 150 sq miles)

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Australia Cultural  

1. Nation occupying the whole of Australia, the smallest continent, between the Indian Ocean and the southwest Pacific Ocean. Its capital is Canberra, and its largest city is Sydney.

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Discover More

The first settlements there were penal colonies for British convicts.

Its aboriginal tribes, which still exist today (see aborigines), are thought to have migrated from Southeast Asia twenty thousand years ago.

Compare meaning

How does australia compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Oceania vs. Australia

Example Sentences

That nickname was prominent on social media again after Freeman scored against Australia, but with some developing things even further.

From BBC • Jun. 19, 2026

And while Pulisic, who is nursing a calf injury, was missed Friday, he wasn’t needed, with the U.S. outpossessing, outpassing and outshooting Australia by wide margins.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2026

Then it dominated Australia without the help of its star playmaker, Christian Pulisic, who was out with a calf injury.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 19, 2026

The United States take a huge step towards winning their World Cup group beating Australia 2-0 with a dominant, high-energy performance in front of a boisterous sellout crowd in Seattle.

From BBC • Jun. 19, 2026

I had a notebook filled with words and phrases I might need in Australia: chemist means “pharmacy,” boot means “trunk,” lift means “elevator,” and to come good means “to turn out okay.”

From "The Thing About Jellyfish" by Ali Benjamin