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

But James Bosworth, the founder of Hxagon, a company that provides political risk analysis in Latin America, said many leaders in the region have come to tough-on-crime policies on their own.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 21, 2026

Henley notes in a report that nearly half its U.S. clients are pursuing European programs—led by Portugal and Italy—while others are split between Latin America and the Caribbean, which offer quicker paths.

From Barron's • Jun. 19, 2026

Henley notes in a report that nearly half its U.S. clients are pursuing European programs—led by Portugal and Italy—while others are split between Latin America and the Caribbean, which offer quicker paths.

From Barron's • Jun. 19, 2026

Current-account deficits played a part in the crises that swept Latin America in the early 1980s, east and southeast Asia in the late 1990s, the U.S. in 2007-09 and the eurozone from 2009 on.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026

Within two years, there was no Soviet Empire to hide behind anymore or to prop up autocratic regimes in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, or Latin America.

From "The World Is Flat" by Thomas L. Friedman