Lusitania

[ loo-si-tey-nee-uh ]

/ ˌlu sɪˈteɪ ni ə /

noun

(italics) a British luxury liner sunk by a German submarine in the North Atlantic on May 7, 1915: one of the events leading to U.S. entry into World War I.

an ancient region and Roman province in the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding generally to modern Portugal.

Related formsLu·si·ta·ni·an, adjective, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for lusitanian

The boat—this floating church of Morrissey, this Lusitanian of sadness—is sold out.
This Charming Man: Meet 'Ronnissey,' Brooklyn's Fake Morrissey|Michael Moynihan|September 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Even a Lusitanian animal may have mingled with these migrants, so that all three elements may occur together in one locality.
The History of the European Fauna|R. F. Scharff
But I am not quite satisfied that the Lusitanian migration ceased to come north then.
The History of the European Fauna|R. F. Scharff
The son of a Lusitanian merchant, while in Fez on a trading expedition, buys the relics of a Christian saint.
The Grateful Dead|Gordon Hall Gerould

A number of Mollusca are mentioned which from their range likewise indicate a Lusitanian origin.
The History of the European Fauna|R. F. Scharff
The sixth cherry is the Lusitanian, which, if the translations read aright, the Belgians rank highest.
The Cherries of New York|U. P. Hedrick

British Dictionary definitions for lusitanian (1 of 2)

Lusitanian

/ (ˌluːsɪˈteɪnɪən) /

adjective

mainly poetic of or relating to Lusitania or Portugal

biology denoting flora or fauna characteristically found only in the warm, moist, west-facing coastal regions of Portugal, Spain, France, and the west and southwest coasts of Great Britain and Ireland

British Dictionary definitions for lusitanian (2 of 2)

Lusitania

/ (ˌluːsɪˈteɪnɪə) /

noun

an ancient region of the W Iberian Peninsula: a Roman province from 27 bc to the late 4th century ad; corresponds to most of present-day Portugal and the Spanish provinces of Salamanca and Cáceres

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

Word Origin and History for lusitanian

Lusitania

Latin name of a region roughly corresponding to modern Portugal; in modern use, allusive or poetic for "Portugal." The Cunard ocean liner (sister ship of the Mauretania and Aquitania, also named after Roman Atlantic coastal provinces) was launched in 1906, torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-20 on May 7, 1915.

Culture definitions for lusitanian

Lusitania

[ (looh-suh-tay-nee-uh) ]

A British passenger ship sunk by a German submarine off the coast of Ireland in 1915. Germany, then at war with Britain but not with the United States (see World War I), had warned Americans against traveling on the ship. More than a hundred Americans died in the sinking. The incident worsened relations between Germany and the United States and encouraged American involvement in the war.