enclave
Americannoun
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enclaves
plural
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a country, or especially, an outlying portion of a country, entirely or mostly surrounded by the territory of another country.
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any small, distinct area or group enclosed or isolated within a larger one.
a Chinese-speaking enclave in London.
verb (used with object)
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of enclave
1865–70; < French, Middle French, noun derivative of enclaver < Vulgar Latin *inclāvāre to lock in, equivalent to Latin in- in- 2 + clāv ( is ) key + -āre infinitive suffix
Compare meaning
How does enclave compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
An enclave is a separate space or group within a larger one. Imagine an enclave as a cave carved out of a big mountain. All of the bears live in the cave or enclave, while the people live on the mountainside. Groups of like people often form an enclave within a country or region. There is probably an enclave of Africans, Cubans, Russians, or other ethnic group in or near your hometown. It isn't usually enclosed, but it's a place where people of the same background gather and live together, such as a Chinatown or a Little Budapest. An enclave of a country may have boundaries, making it clear that it's a distinct part — and sometimes under separate government — from the larger territory it's within.
Vocabulary lists containing enclave
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Spanning 5,920 square feet, the six-bedroom, seven-bathroom residence is tucked behind gates and surrounded by mature greenery, offering plenty of privacy in the sought-after California enclave.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026
Lithuania, a Nato member, shares a land border with the Russian enclave of Kaliningad.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
Instead, they appeared in a different online enclave entirely: the New Age movement, which takes a more metaphysical approach to reality.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
When Brigid D’Souza moved to Jersey City in 2005 from Washington, D.C., she and her husband found a home in Newport, a waterfront enclave in the city’s downtown.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
Natural history thus slowly detached itself from the wider world of learning and began to form an enclave on its own.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
When Frech needs to recover from his “Dancing With the Stars” rehearsals, the Paralympic gold medalist can retreat to his family’s home in one of Los Angeles’ most exclusive enclaves.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026
The franchise fled further and further from coastal cultural centers, shifting from the “Real World” of New York City and Chicago to the air-conditioned enclaves of New Jersey and the suburbs of Washington, D.C.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
He calls it “The Project,” and says there’s about 7,516.07 miles in total, when you include various enclaves and adjacent cities like Beverly Hills or Burbank.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
Spain's Ceuta and Melilla enclaves, which are located in North Africa, represent the European Union's only land border with Africa.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
As true geeks, it was almost a point of pride to avoid one of the trendy enclaves most American kids would kill to get to.
From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz
The stamp cards could also include, for the completists, two cantonal quadripoints, and some space for the curious case of the two Appenzells, formerly a unified canton enclaved within Sankt Gallen.
From New York Times ● May 15, 2012
DUDLEY, a municipal, county and parliamentary borough and market-town of Worcestershire, England, in a portion of that county enclaved in Staffordshire, 8 m.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 8 "Dubner" to "Dyeing" by Various
Between this and Dudley lie the great ironworks of Roundoak, and the extensive suburb of Netherton in the enclaved portion of Worcestershire.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 8 "Dubner" to "Dyeing" by Various
Further, the writing, though large, is not easily legible, for it is involved, enclaved, and conjointed in a manner sufficiently puzzling to those who see it for the first time.
From Illuminated Manuscripts by John William Bradley
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
