Kunming

American

[koon-ming] / ˈkʊnˈmɪŋ /

noun

Pinyin, Wade-Giles.

a city in and the capital of Yunnan province, in southern China: an important transshipment point on the Burma Road in World War II.

Kunming British

/ ˈkʊnˈmɪŋ /

noun

a city in SW China, capital of Yunnan province, near Lake Tien: important during World War II as a Chinese military centre, American air base, and transport terminus for the Burma Road; Yunnan University (1934). Pop: 1 748 000 (2005 est)

"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.

China Eastern flight MU5375 was travelling from Kunming to Guangzhou on March 21, 2022, when the jet inexplicably fell from an altitude of 29,000 feet, slamming into a mountain.

From Barron's • May 8, 2026

In the past few years though, high-speed rail has expanded in all directions from Kunming, Yunnan’s capital.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 20, 2025

A research team led by Professor Chuanmao Zhang from Peking University and Kunming University of Science and Technology has long been focused on uncovering the biological mechanisms behind aging and progeria.

From Science Daily • Nov. 7, 2025

Guaiqiong Li is an assistant research fellow in African studies at Yunnan University in Kunming, China.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2025

We went to many different cities—back to Kweilin, to Changsha, as far south as Kunming.

From "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan

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