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Ethiopian

American  
[ee-thee-oh-pee-uhn] / ˌi θiˈoʊ pi ən /

adjective

  1. of or relating to Ethiopia or to its inhabitants.

  2. belonging to the part of Africa south of the equator.

  3. Zoogeography. belonging to a geographical division comprising Africa south of the tropic of Cancer, the southern part of Arabia, and Madagascar.

  4. Archaic. Black African.


noun

  • Ethiopians
    plural
  1. a native of Ethiopia.

  2. a member of any of various supposedly dark-skinned peoples regarded by the ancients as coming from a country lying south of Egypt.

  3. Archaic. a Black African.

Ethiopian British  
/ ˌiːθɪˈəʊpɪən /

adjective

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Ethiopia, its people, or any of their languages

  2. of or denoting a zoogeographical region consisting of Africa south of the Sahara

  3. obsolete anthropol of or belonging to a postulated racial group characterized by dark skin, an oval elongated face, and thin lips, living chiefly in Africa south of the Sahara

"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

noun

  1. a native or inhabitant of Ethiopia

  2. any of the languages of Ethiopia, esp Amharic

"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

noun

  1. an archaic word for Black

"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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns


Etymology

Origin of Ethiopian

First recorded in 1545–55; Ethiopi(a) + -an


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:

The fighting raised fears of a regional war, as the rebels had the backing of neighbouring Eritrea, which deployed thousands of troops in Ethiopian territory.

From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026

Local authorities are also arranging burials for those who have died, while the survivors - all Ethiopian nationals - have medical care readily available to them.

From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026

A high-ranking Ethiopian federal army commander sought to play down the conflict in comments to AFP.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

The diplomatic confrontation came hours after powerful explosions were heard overnight in Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, including near Ethiopia's military headquarters.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

His favorite pupusería was down the street, as was the Ethiopian spot his mother frequented.

From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

About two-thirds of Ethiopians are Christians, mostly Orthodox, while one third are Muslim.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

The victims, aged between 7 and 46, were mostly Iraqi Kurds, but also included Afghans, Ethiopians and Egyptians.

From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026

At least two Nigerians and four Ethiopians have been killed in recent weeks, local media reported, while there have been attacks on citizens of other African countries.

From BBC ● May 3, 2026

Ahmed, though, is facing growing domestic pressure to reduce the steep prices Ethiopians pay for imports, from food to fuel, which principally come via ports in Djibouti, Somalia, and Kenya.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 7, 2026

Dr. Trefusis, I could tell, quickened them all with his ardor in promoting the excellence of the Royal Ethiopians, our willingness to fight, our profound interest in our success in this contest.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

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