Columbian

American  

[kuh-luhm-bee-uhn] / kəˈlʌm bi ən /

adjective

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

2. pertaining to Christopher Columbus.

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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

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noun

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

Other Word Forms

• post-Columbian adjective

Etymology

Origin of Columbian

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

Example Sentences

Roth made his way to Bloomington, Ill., apprenticing himself to an architect, later returning to Chicago, where he found work on the 1893 World’s Columbian Exhibition.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

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

In the six months of the fair the Columbian Guard made only 2,929 arrests, about sixteen per day, typically for disorderly conduct, petty theft, and pickpocketing, with pickpockets most favoring the fair’s always-crowded aquarium.

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