Constantinople

American  

[kon-stan-tn-oh-puhl] / ˌkɒn stæn tnˈoʊ pəl /

noun

1. former name of Istanbul.

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Constantinople British  

/ ˌkɒnstæntɪˈnəʊpəl /

noun

1. the former name (330–1926) of Istanbul

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Constantinople Cultural  

1. A city founded by the Roman emperor Constantine the Great as capital of the eastern part of the Roman Empire. Constantine ruled over both parts of the empire from Constantinople, which was later capital of the Byzantine Empire. Constantinople was conquered by Turkish forces in the fifteenth century.

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Today, under the name of Istanbul, Constantinople is the largest city in Turkey.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Constantinople

Constantinople had a superb strategic position and massive ancient defenses: a huge moat, an outer wall, and an inner wall studded with towers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Mr. Kaldellis’s most important contribution is to argue that “the fall of Constantinople was not inevitable, and the defense was not doomed.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

The Gallipoli campaign, part of a British-led effort to defeat the Ottoman Empire, aimed to secure a naval route through the Dardanelles from the Mediterranean Sea to Constantinople, now Istanbul, in Turkey.

From BBC ● Apr. 25, 2026

He was joined by clergymen including Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, the most senior bishop in Eastern Orthodoxy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 28, 2025

Mrs. Reilly’s mind flew back to Constantinople Street, where she had left Ignatius writing in his room and mumbling something about Myrna Minkoff.

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole