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• continental
  continental

  adjective

  of or of the nature of a continent.
• Continental
  Continental

  adjective

  of or characteristic of Europe, excluding the British Isles

continental

American  

[kon-tn-en-tl] / ˌkɒn tnˈɛn tl /

adjective

1. of or of the nature of a continent.

2. (usually initial capital letter) of or relating to the mainland of Europe, to Europeans, or to European customs and attitudes.

3. (initial capital letter) of or relating to the 13 original American colonies during and immediately after the American Revolution.

4. of or relating to the continent of North America.

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noun

• continentals
  plural

1. (initial capital letter) a soldier of the Continental Army in the American Revolution.

2. a piece of paper currency issued by the Continental Congress during the American Revolution.

3. a small amount.

   advice that's not worth a continental.

4. an inhabitant of a continent.

5. (usually initial capital letter) an inhabitant of the mainland of Europe.

Continental British  

/ ˌkɒntɪˈnɛntəl /

adjective

1. of or characteristic of Europe, excluding the British Isles

2. of or relating to the 13 original British North American colonies during and immediately after the War of American Independence

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noun

1. (sometimes not capital) an inhabitant of Europe, excluding the British Isles

2. a regular soldier of the rebel army during the War of American Independence

3. history a currency note issued by the Continental Congress

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• Continentalism
  noun
• Continentalist
  noun
• noncontinental
  adjective
• precontinental
  adjective
• continentally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• continentals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of continental

First recorded in 1750–60; continent + -al ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

continental Continental continentals

Rather than stepping away from European football he will continue playing continental competition while competing in one of the most fervent environments.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

The biennial Talisman Sabre exercise last year in Australia featured the first live-fire exercise of the mobile, ground-launched Typhon missile system outside the continental U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026

Almost all of those people have already been sent back, more continue to be returned to their home country, and none have successfully crossed into continental Europe.

From Slate ● Jul. 31, 2026

Speaking on a press call, BMW CEO Milan Nedeljkovic said the company was preparing for Chinese competitors to arrive in Europe even if the impact on BMW's continental sales had been limited so far.

From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026

She gives us a key and property map and tells us about the complimentary continental breakfast buffet.

From "Everything, Everything" by Nicola Yoon

He was the leading voice for independence in the Continental Congress.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

“Now, we are in the final phase of our realignment as a pure-play tire manufacturer,” said Continental Chief Executive Christian Kotz.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

During the 2015 Fifa scandal, Sony, Emirates, Castrol, Continental Tyres and Johnson & Johnson were among the companies to discontinue their huge sponsorship deals.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

Michelin’s shares have outperformed those of peers Continental and Pirelli, and the results might not be enough to trigger a positive market reaction, according to Bernstein.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

In his own memoirs he had selected May 15, 1776, as the most decisive moment, because that was the day the Continental Congress passed a resolution calling for new constitutions in each of the states.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

"If you don't do this and let the continentals get ahead, then they will start to undermine the cement ... which is clearing, settlement and transactions," Hodson said.

From Reuters ● Sep. 2, 2021

Britain used to be seen by continentals as quirky and occasionally awkward - but reliably pragmatic on the economy.

From BBC ● Jan. 21, 2017

Even among continentals, the post-Brexit fall of the pound seems to have compensated for whatever affront they may have taken.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 15, 2016

A complaint many continentals and Britons north of Oxford often make of those in between.

From Economist ● Oct. 19, 2012

The prejudice that islanders are supposed to learn from superior continentals wasn’t the sole reason why record-breaking Japanese pottery caused such a shock.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• global
• multicultural