West Virginia

American  

noun

1. a state in the eastern United States. 24,181 sq. mi. (62,629 sq. km). Charleston. WV (for use with zip code), W.Va.

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West Virginia British  

noun

1. Abbreviation: W Va.   W. Va..   WV.  a state of the eastern US: part of Virginia until the outbreak of the American Civil War (1861); consists chiefly of the Allegheny Plateau; bounded on the west by the Ohio River; coal-mining. Capital: Charleston. Pop: 1 810 354 (2003 est). Area: 62 341 sq km (24 070 sq miles)

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West Virginia Cultural  

1. State in the southeastern United States bordered by Pennsylvania and Maryland to the north, Virginia to the east and south, and Kentucky and Ohio to the west. Its capital and largest city is Charleston.

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Ranks first in bituminous coal production, with about twenty percent of the nation's total.

Separated from Virginia after Virginia seceded from the Union in 1861; it was granted statehood in 1863, during the Civil War.

Other Word Forms

• West Virginian
  adjective

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

West Virginia

Georgia, West Virginia and South Carolina included triggers to mandate further reductions or policy changes when the state hits certain revenue targets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

West Virginia, a state with fewer school-age students than are enrolled in Chicago Public Schools, has gained about 40 new private schools.

From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026

Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia had also reported cases linked to the lettuce.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

More than 1,600 cases of the parasitic bug cyclosporiasis have been confirmed since April, with most in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

I guess it’s fair to say there were two distinct phases to my life in West Virginia: everything that happened before October 5, 1957 and everything that happened afterward.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam