Kolkata

American

[kol-kah-tuh] / kɒlˈkɑ tə /

noun

a seaport in and the capital of West Bengal state, in eastern India, on the Hugli River: former capital of British India.

Kolkata British

/ ˈkolkɑːtə /

noun

Former official name: Calcutta. a port in E India, capital of West Bengal state, on the Hooghly River: former capital of the country (1833–1912); major commercial and industrial centre; many universities. Pop: 4 580 544 (2001)

"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

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.

"The entire country has its eyes on this state's election results," political analyst Biswanath Chakraborty told AFP, in the main city Kolkata.

From Barron's • May 4, 2026

But on 26 October last year, she set off from the Attari-Wagah border between Pakistan and India, bound for Kolkata, just a few miles from where her father Deric was born.

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026

Last week, the BJP's state President Samik Bhattacharya offered journalists in Kolkata an invitation for results day on 4 May - when, he said, the party would welcome them with fried fish.

From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026

Born in 1939 in north Kolkata to stage actress Prabha Devi, Bhadhuri grew up around performers.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

The scholarship pays for the top-scoring student in the region to study at a private boarding school in Kolkata.

From "Tiger Boy" by Mitali Perkins

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023