Latin America

American  

[lat-n uh-mer-i-kuh] / ˈlæt n əˈmɛr ɪ kə /

noun

1. the part of the American continents south of the United States in which Spanish, Portuguese, or French is officially spoken.

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Latin America British  

noun

1. those areas of America whose official languages are Spanish and Portuguese, derived from Latin: South America, Central America, Mexico, and certain islands in the Caribbean

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Latin America Cultural  

1. A term applied to all of the Spanish- or Portuguese-speaking nations south of the United States.

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Other Word Forms

• Latin American
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of Latin America

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Latin America

Some experts believe tighter scrutiny of traditional trafficking routes from Latin America may be one factor driving cartels to diversify their operations.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

Estuardo Mazariegos and Jose Ugarte, running against each other for a city council seat representing part of South Los Angeles, are immigrants from Latin America who arrived undocumented as children.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

Offshore activity in Latin America, Europe and Africa as well as Asia “more than offset” the impact of disruptions in the Middle East, SLB Chief Executive Olivier Le Peuch said Friday.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026

Under a tradition of geographic rotation that is not always followed, Latin America is making a claim to the post this time.

From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026

He had spent the years after college traveling around Asia, Latin America.

From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri