Curaçao

[ koo r-uh-sou, -soh, kyoo r-; koo r-uh-sou, -soh, kyoo r- ]

/ ˈkʊər əˌsaʊ, -ˌsoʊ, ˈkyʊər-; ˌkʊər əˈsaʊ, -ˈsoʊ, ˌkyʊər- /

noun

the main island of the Netherlands Antilles, off the NW coast of Venezuela. 173 sq. mi. (448 sq. km). Capital: Willemstad.

Netherlands Antilles.

(lowercase) Also cu·ra·çao

[kyoo r-uh-soh, -soh-uh] /ˌkyʊər əˈsoʊ, -ˈsoʊ ə/. a cordial or liqueur flavored with the peel of the sour orange.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for curacao

And so it comes to this: We desire to make for the Dutch settlement of Curacao as straightly as possible.
Captain Blood|Rafael Sabatini
Will you have the effrontery to tell me that is the coast of Curacao?
Captain Blood|Rafael Sabatini
He had not conceived that Curacao was of such considerable dimensions.
Captain Blood|Rafael Sabatini
He started on curacao, which I reckoned was a new drink to him, and presently his tongue ran freely.
Greenmantle|John Buchan

Lashings of stuff we put up: port wine and sherry and curacao to which we did ample justice.
Ulysses|James Joyce

British Dictionary definitions for curacao

Curaçao

/ (ˌkjʊərəˈsəʊ) /

noun

an island in the Caribbean, the largest in the Netherlands Antilles. Capital: Willemstad. Pop: 146 836 (2013 est). Area: 444 sq km (171 sq miles)

an orange-flavoured liqueur originally made there

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

Word Origin and History for curacao

Curacao

West Indian island, Curaçao, discovered 1499 by Alonso de Hojeda, who called it Isla de los Gigantes in reference to the stature of the natives. The modern name probably is a Europeanized version of some lost native word. The liqueur is made from the dried peel of the Curaçao orange.