Cathay

[ka-they]

noun Literary or Archaic.

China.

Origin of Cathay

< Medieval Latin Cat(h)aya < Turkic; compare Tatar Kïtai

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for cathay

Contemporary Examples of cathay

One airline that has already banned shipments on its passenger flights is Cathay Pacific.
Passenger Flights Must Stop Carrying Lithium-Ion Batteries as Cargo
Clive Irving
May 5, 2014
This is the story of the Jesuit who more than 500 years ago made himself part of Cathay.
James Fallows: 5 Favorite ‘Outsiders In China’ Books
James Fallows
May 11, 2012

Historical Examples of cathay

We're registered here as a recruiting ship for Cathay, so it's no secret.
Victory
Lester del Rey
If one of those titans was to be used against Cathay, Earth's colony was doomed.
Victory
Lester del Rey
Yet if she did, he was sure that it would have been impossible not to use them in defense of the colony of Cathay.
Victory
Lester del Rey
The humans of Cathay might try a return raid, but he was unworried.
Victory
Lester del Rey
Cathay couldn't maintain the big ship, and it was practically useless.
Victory
Lester del Rey

British Dictionary definitions for cathay

Cathay

noun

a literary or archaic name for China

Word Origin for Cathay

C14: from Medieval Latin Cataya, of Turkic origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for cathay

Cathay

1560s, poetic name for "China," from Medieval Latin Cataya, from Turkish Khitai, from Uighur Khitai, name of a Tatar dynasty that ruled Beijing 936-1122.