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Columbian

American  
[kuh-luhm-bee-uhn] / kəˈlʌm bi ən /

adjective

  1. Literary. pertaining to America or the United States.

  2. pertaining to Christopher Columbus.


noun

  1. Printing. a 16-point type of a size between English and great primer.

Columbian British  
/ kəˈlʌmbɪən /

adjective

  1. of or relating to the United States

  2. relating to Christopher Columbus

"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

noun

  1. a size of printer's type, approximately equal to 16 point; two-line Brevier

"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

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of Columbian

1750–60; Columbi(a) + -an or Columb(us) + -ian

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

On the eve of the Civil War, the Columbian Register lamented the growing likelihood of “the stars of our political firmament” being “torn from their orbits, and plunging madly about, or tilting one the other.”

From The Wall Street Journal Dec. 18, 2025

The BC Lumber Trade Council, which represents British Columbian lumber producers in Canada on trade matters, in September called the new tariffs "misguided and unnecessary."

From Barron's Oct. 14, 2025

Larson centers the activities of two men in the years leading up to and during Chicago’s 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition.

From Los Angeles Times Apr. 14, 2025

These will remain in place "until the first planeload of Columbian deportees is successfully returned", the White House said.

From BBC Jan. 27, 2025

The Columbian Guard arrived in force to clear the way for additional engines and ladder wagons.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

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