Calcutta

American  

[kal-kuht-uh] / kælˈkʌt ə /

noun

1. former name of Kolkata (but sometimes still used).

2. Also called Calcutta pool. (sometimes lowercase) a form of betting pool for a competition or tournament, as golf or auto racing, in which gamblers bid for participating contestants in an auction, the proceeds from which are put into a pool for distribution, according to a prearranged scale of percentages, to those who selected winners.

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Calcutta British  

/ kælˈkʌtə /

noun

1. the former official name (still widely used) of Kolkata

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Calcutta Cultural  

1. Largest city in India, located in the eastern part of the country on the Hooghly River.

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Calcutta is one of the largest cities in the world and suffers from poverty, overcrowding, and unemployment.

Example Sentences

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Calcutta

It also brought together a diverse network of artists across its international ports, from London to Calcutta to Canton.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026

Their route to deliver the plane in Wales included stops in Calcutta, Muscat and Cairo.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026

Lacklustre and outgunned in Rome in week one, Scotland are now France's biggest challengers after following up the Calcutta Cup demolition of England with a nailbiting, nerve-wrenching win in Wales.

From BBC ● Feb. 23, 2026

"It is always tough backing up an emotional performance like a Calcutta Cup game," said Tuipulotu, with Scotland yet to finish higher than third in the Six Nations era.

From Barron's ● Feb. 20, 2026

I read two of these studies on a winter morning on the subway in New York, a few months after returning from Calcutta.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

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