Carolina

American  

[kar-uh-lahy-nuh, kah-raw-lee-nah] / ˌkær əˈlaɪ nə, ˌkɑ rɔˈli nɑ /

noun

1. a former English colony on the Atlantic coast of North America: officially divided into North Carolina and South Carolina in 1729.

2. North Carolina or South Carolina.

3. a city in northeast Puerto Rico, southeast of San Juan.

4. Also called the Carolinas.  North Carolina and South Carolina.

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Carolina British  

/ ˌkærəˈlaɪnə /

noun

1. a former English colony on the E coast of North America, first established in 1663: divided in 1729 into North and South Carolina, which are often referred to as the Carolinas

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Example Sentences

Chicago selected North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson fourth, completing an elite quartet of players at the top of the draft.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 24, 2026

"It is a pretty aggressive grower," Hans Paerl, a professor of marine and environmental sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, told the magazine.

From Barron's • Jun. 21, 2026

After a short stop back at base camp in Charlotte, North Carolina, for Clarke's men, they will make their way back to Florida where this adventure kicked off three weeks ago.

From BBC • Jun. 20, 2026

My wife and I started an annual scholarship for high school students in rural North Carolina going into a trade school, and the trade school helped us set it up.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 20, 2026

Whereas Jackson tended toward a more volatile and pulpit-thumping style reminiscent of an itinerant Presbyterian minister in the revivalistic mode, Smith preferred the more measured cadences of the South Carolina aristocrat steeped in Ciceronian formalities.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis