Massachusetts

American  

[mas-uh-choo-sits] / ˌmæs əˈtʃu sɪts /

noun

1. a state in the northeastern United States, on the Atlantic coast. 8,257 square miles (21,385 square kilometers). Boston. MA (for use with zip code), Mass.

2. Massachusett.

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Massachusetts British  

/ ˌmæsəˈtʃuːsɪts /

noun

1. Abbreviation: Mass.   MA.  a state of the northeastern US, on the Atlantic: a centre of resistance to English colonial policy during the War of American Independence; consists of a coastal plain rising to mountains in the west. Capital: Boston. Pop: 6 433 422 (2003 est). Area: 20 269 sq km (7826 sq miles)

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Massachusetts Cultural  

1. State in the northeastern United States; one of the New England states. Bordered by Vermont and New Hampshire to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, and New York to the west. Its capital and largest city is Boston.

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One of the thirteen colonies, playing a key role in resisting the British before and during the Revolutionary War.

The settlement of Massachusetts began in 1620, when the first Pilgrims arrived from England in the Mayflower near Plymouth Rock.

Example Sentences

The Massachusetts native, a former journalist, just completed a 24-city book tour while pregnant with her first child.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 8, 2026

They then face Ghana on 23 June in Massachusetts and take on Panama on 27 June at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026

Thornton, 22, launched the Huntington Beach defense tech startup in 2023 after dropping out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he studied aerospace engineering.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 3, 2026

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford and Harvard have all restored testing requirements.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 1, 2026

What followed was the longest trial in the history of the Massachusetts courts, a trial almost as unique as the catastrophe that had caused it.

From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler