Iran
noun
a republic in SW Asia. About 635,000 sq. mi. (1,644,650 sq. km). Teheran.
Iran
1 American
[ih-ran, ih-rahn, ahy-ran]
/ ɪˈræn, ɪˈrɑn, aɪˈræn /
noun
Iran.
2
American
abbreviation
Iran
British
/ ɪˈrɑːn /
noun
Iran
Cultural
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In 1979, Iranian militants attacked the U.S. embassy and seized hostages, including sixty-two Americans, who were held until 1981.
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ruled from 1979 until his death in 1989, imposing strict Islamic law.
The United States supported the regime of the shah (king) Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, who was forced by popular opposition to leave the country in 1979.
The 1990s saw some moderating elements emerge to challenge the conservative heirs to Khomeini.
The Iranian government was widely believed to have controlled the taking of U. S. hostages in Lebanon. (See Iran-Contra affair.)
Core of the ancient Persian Empire, Iran was known as Persia until 1935.
Iraq unsuccessfully invaded Iran in 1980.
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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.
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Many of those on Air Force One, including the traveling press, didn’t appreciate discovering that they had been put on a decoy plane that government officials thought Iran might blow to smithereens.
From Slate ● Aug. 15, 2026
GDP per capita is in decline, due to more than six million Afghans arriving from neighbouring Iran and Pakistan in three years, while the World Bank estimated real growth reaching 4.8 percent.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
But persistent price increases and concerns about the economic effects of the Iran conflict are still weighing on shoppers, according to the survey’s director, Joanne Hsu.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Tracking data compiled by BBC Verify shows that at its last recorded speed, the vessel would reach Duqm port in Oman, about 500 miles off the coast of Iran, around 22 August.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
In Not Without My Daughter, Sally Field plays an American woman trapped in Iran with a psycho husband who won’t allow her to leave the country with their young daughter.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
In a separate post, the president said "talks are continuing, at a rapid pace, with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
“This is also about the fans. People come from everywhere, even from Iran. So we’re concerned about their safety.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
"At this rate, there might not even be much left of Iran. I don't want this to be our last Nowruz."
From BBC ● Mar. 19, 2026
"When we fled the cities for our lives, we went to Iran. They helped us, they gave us shelter and food," he said.
From Barron's ● Mar. 7, 2026
“I am Dr. Zolghad, a Paragon of Vision and from Iran. Though I make my home now in the great Marvellian city of Betelmore.”
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
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.
