Britain

American  

[brit-n] / ˈbrɪt n /

noun

1. Great Britain.

2. Britannia.

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Britain British  

/ ˈbrɪtən /

noun

1. another name for Great Britain United Kingdom

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Britain Cultural  

1. Officially the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, located on the British Isles off the western coast of the mainland (continent) of Europe. It comprises England, Wales, and Scotland on the island of Great Britain, and Northern Ireland on the island of Ireland. Its capital and largest city is London.

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It is one of the world's leading industrialized nations.

Most of the settlers of the American colonies were British. The colonies remained under the British crown until the American Revolutionary War.

Britain declared war on Germany in 1939. Allied with the United States and the Soviet Union, the British, under the leadership of Winston Churchill, played an important role in defeating Germany.

At the height of its imperial power in the late nineteenth century, Britain boasted colonies and possessions around the globe. (See British Empire.)

A constitutional monarchy, Britain's government calls for the hereditary king or queen to perform mostly ceremonial functions. Parliament governs the country.

Compare meaning

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

• Britain vs. Great Britain
• Britain vs. England

Example Sentences

It depicts Caesar Rodney, who cast a clinching vote in the 1776 US Declaration of Independence from Britain but is viewed critically by some because he owned slaves.

From Barron's • May 17, 2026

NRW said the fields were a natural habitat for rare flowers only found in arable land which were believed to have been brought to Britain with crop seeds thousands of years ago.

From BBC • May 16, 2026

Major financial backers Britain, France, Germany and Italy have reserved slots in the final, alongside the hosts, Austria, making up the 25 finalists.

From Barron's • May 16, 2026

World War I was an example as a rising Germany threatened Britain as Europe’s leading power.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026

Britain relied on its navy to safeguard the trade routes that brought riches to the small, densely populated British Isles and helped feed the British people.

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