Dead Sea

American  

noun

1. a salt lake between Israel and Jordan: the lowest lake in the world, more than 1,400 feet (430 meters) below sea level. Water from the lake, whose extreme salinity and high mineral content make it inhospitable to plant or animal life, has been used for health purposes since ancient times.

---

Dead Sea British  

noun

1. a lake between Israel, Jordan, and the West Bank, now 420 m (1378 ft) below sea level; originally 390 m (1285 ft): the lowest lake in the world, with no outlet and very high salinity; outline, esp at the southern end, reduced considerably in recent years. Area: originally about 950 sq km (365 sq miles); by 2003 about 625 sq km (240 sq miles)

---

Dead Sea Cultural  

1. Salt lake on the border between Israel and Jordan.

---

Discover More

Its shore, at approximately thirteen hundred feet below sea level, is the lowest point of dry land on Earth.

Etymology

Origin of Dead Sea

First recorded in 1300–50

Example Sentences

My brother had his bar mitzvah at the mountaintop fortress of Masada overlooking the Dead Sea.

From Salon • Nov. 30, 2025

We pass through the sand-coloured, rocky land that descends in the direction of the Dead Sea, towards Israel and ultimately Gaza.

From BBC • Jan. 16, 2025

Dead Sea swims, drinking at nightclubs, and hanging out with Israel Defense Forces soldiers are still essential components of most trips, which differ in itinerary depending on the tour theme and provider.

From Slate • Oct. 21, 2024

Related species have been found in the depths of the Baltic seas, the soil of Antarctica, and the Dead Sea, which is why humans rarely come into contact with them, he says.

From Science Magazine • Jun. 19, 2024

One such place is the Fertile Crescent, where the mountains of western Iran and the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, bracket the Tigris and Euphrates river systems.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann