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Synonyms

exclave

American  
[eks-kleyv] / ˈɛks kleɪv /

noun

  1. a portion of a country geographically separated from the main part by surrounding foreign territory.

    West Berlin was an exclave of West Germany.
exclave British  
/ ˈɛkskleɪv /

noun

  1. a part of a country entirely surrounded by foreign territory: viewed from the position of the home country Compare enclave

"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

Etymology

Origin of exclave

First recorded in 1885–90; ex- 1 + -clave, modeled on enclave

Compare meaning

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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.

Azerbaijan announced on Friday it was withdrawing diplomatic staff from Iran, a day after drones launched from Iranian territory targeted an airport and exploded near a school in the country's Nakhichevan exclave, bordering Iran.

From Barron's • Mar. 6, 2026

Poland shares not only a border with the Russian exclave Kaliningrad, but also Belarus, a close Moscow ally now enmeshed in Russia’s defense infrastructure.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 13, 2025

The route will connect Azerbaijan and its autonomous Nakhchivan exclave, which are separated by Armenian territory.

From BBC • Aug. 8, 2025

They will attend a ceremony for a gas pipeline that will bring gas to Nakhchivan and inaugurate a newly modernised military installation in the exclave, Turkey said.

From Reuters • Sep. 25, 2023

Armenian leaders remain   preoccupied by the long conflict with Azerbaijan over   Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian-populated exclave, assigned   to Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s by Moscow.

From The 2001 CIA World Factbook by United States. Central Intelligence Agency

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.