Great Basin

American  

noun

1. a region in the Western U.S. that has no drainage to the ocean: includes most of Nevada and parts of Utah, California, Oregon, and Idaho. 210,000 sq. mi. (544,000 sq. km).

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Great Basin British  

noun

1. a semiarid region of the western US, between the Wasatch and the Sierra Nevada Mountains, having no drainage to the ocean: includes Nevada, W Utah, and parts of E California, S Oregon, and Idaho. Area: about 490 000 sq km (189 000 sq miles)

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Great Basin

All of the Joshua Tree agreements were with the Great Basin Institute, a nonprofit based in Reno, Nev.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

A similar phenomenon heats up Santa Ana winds as air from high above the Great Basin descends and races out to sea.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 2, 2026

They occur when a large area of high pressure becomes established over the interior of western US, centred around the Great Basin, which includes much of Nevada and parts of Utah, Idaho and south-east Oregon.

From BBC ● Jan. 8, 2025

"It stands to significantly impact and alter ecosystems across the Great Basin and Mojave Desert."

From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2024

“Whose doesn’t? The Great Basin being in New Mexico, of course.”

From "Adrift" by Paul Griffin