Crete

American  

[kreet] / krit /

noun

1. Formerly Candia.  a Greek island in the Mediterranean, southeast of mainland Greece. 3,235 sq. mi. (8,380 sq. km). Canea.

2. Sea of Crete, a part of the south Aegean Sea lying between the Cyclades Islands and Crete.

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Crete British  

/ kriːt /

noun

1. Modern Greek name: Kríti.  a mountainous island in the E Mediterranean, the largest island of Greece: of archaeological importance for the ruins of Minoan civilization. Pop: 601 131 (2001). Area: 8331 sq km (3216 sq miles)

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Crete Cultural  

1. Island in southeastern Greece in the Mediterranean Sea.

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One of the world's earliest civilizations, the Minoan civilization, reached its peak in Crete in 1600 b.c.

Crete is the largest of the Greek islands.

In Greek mythology, Crete was Minos's kingdom, where the Minotaur lived at the center of the Labyrinth.

Example Sentences

Zucchello’s business relied on trade routes spanning from the Black Sea to Crete to Alexandria—the very networks that would spread the plague bacterium.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026

All the other activists were taken to Crete and freed.

From BBC • May 10, 2026

Dozens of intercepted activists disembarked on Friday at the Greek island of Crete, according to an AFP journalist.

From Barron's • May 2, 2026

It confirmed that all other members of the captured flotilla boats had been released on the Greek island of Crete.

From BBC • May 1, 2026

When the grateful Athenians would have given him a large sum of money he refused and asked only that there should be friendship between Athens and his own home, Cnossus in Crete.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton