immigration

American  

[im-i-grey-shuhn] / ˌɪm ɪˈgreɪ ʃən /

noun

• immigrations
  plural

1. the act of immigrating.

2. a group or number of immigrants.

---

immigration British  

/ ˌɪmɪˈɡreɪʃən /

noun

1. the movement of non-native people into a country in order to settle there

2. the part of a port, airport, etc where government employees examine the passports, visas, etc of foreign nationals entering the country

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonimmigration
  noun
• preimmigration
  noun
• anti-immigration
  adjective
• immigrational
  adjective
• immigratory
  adjective
• proimmigration
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• immigrations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of immigration

First recorded in 1650–60; im- ¹ + migration

Explanation

Immigration is the process of moving to a new country to stay. New York's Ellis Island was considered a gateway for European immigration to the United States during the early 1900's. Nowadays, people immigrate through airports instead of islands. The word migration is in immigration, which is something we think of birds doing when they fly South for the winter. It's not an accident — if American birds had little passports, they'd have to go through immigration when they got to Mexico. When humans immigrate, they have to follow the rules of the new country or else they risk getting in trouble. Immigration is the act of going to a new country, while emigration refers to the process of leaving one.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

immigration immigrations

An immigration officer charged in an on-duty Minneapolis shooting has been held in a Texas jail.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

The report says the Census Bureau matched the Data-Clear voter files with federal immigration records to determine if people were citizens and eligible to vote.

From Salon ● Aug. 21, 2026

The report compared federal administrative records that include immigration information with a nationwide voter file dataset provided by the Virginia-based business Data-Clear under a contract it won related to the 2030 census.

From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026

Gee made a similar move to enforce the settlement in response to the president’s controversial first-term family separation policy and widespread public outcry over the treatment of children in immigration detention.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

Refugees accepted for immigration to America kept watch on a camp bulletin board.

From "Lost Boy, Lost Girl" by John Bul Dau

The move comes as local governments move to help immigrations caught up in the raids.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2025

It noted that illegal crossings were still down 27% from July 2022 and were well below the days that preceded the new immigrations rules.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 18, 2023

Beck-Mewing said rents were rebounding after many property owners dropped rents during COVID, and will likely to continue to increase in 2023 due to increased rental demand after immigrations allowances were raised by almost one-third.

From Reuters ● Dec. 19, 2022

The organization is responsible for border security, immigrations and customs, and disaster relief and prevention.

From National Geographic Kids ● Aug. 11, 2021

The old trading posts, the United States fort, the missions, the Indian wars, the early immigrations, the steamboat enterprises, all unite to give rare value to this picturesque “capital of the sheep country.”

From The Columbia River Its History, Its Myths, Its Scenery, Its Commerce by William Denison Lyman

Related Words

• exodus
• migration
• travel