Dunkirk

American  

[duhn-kurk] / ˈdʌn kɜrk /

noun

1. French Dunkerque.  a seaport in N France: site of the evacuation of a British expeditionary force of over 330,000 men under German fire May 29–June 4, 1940.

2. a period of crisis or emergency when drastic measures must be enforced.

   The smaller nations were facing a financial Dunkirk.

3. a city in W New York, on Lake Erie.

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Dunkirk Cultural  

1. The scene of a remarkable, though ignominious, retreat by the British army in World War II. Dunkirk, a town on the northern coast of France, was the last refuge of the British during the fall of France, and several hundred naval and civilian vessels took the troops back to England in shifts over three days.

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Discover More

The term Dunkirk is sometimes used to signify a desperate retreat.

Example Sentences

The victims set off from a beach near Dunkirk in France and came from a number of countries, including Iraq, Somali, Ethiopia, Egypt and Afghanistan.

From BBC • Feb. 5, 2026

Greenpeace members on Saturday filmed the loading of about 10 containers with radioactive labels onto a cargo ship in the Channel port of Dunkirk, the NGO said.

From Barron's • Nov. 16, 2025

We had met the woman, who gave her name as Luna, at a food distribution point run by local charities outside Dunkirk.

From BBC • Aug. 5, 2025

Earlier this year, two sources told us the shadowy figure, al-Millah, was running the gang's operations in the forest near Dunkirk.

From BBC • Aug. 5, 2025

In Europe, Hitler had driven the British and their allies into the sea at Dunkirk.

From "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand