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merida

[mer-i-duh]
noun
  1. suntan(def 2).
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Origin of merida

apparently after Mérida, Mexico

Mérida

[me-ree-th ah]
noun
  1. a city in and the capital of Yucatán, in SE Mexico.
  2. a city in W Venezuela.
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Yucatán

[yoo-kuh-tan; Spanish yoo-kah-tahn]
noun
  1. a peninsula in SE Mexico and N Central America comprising parts of SE Mexico, N Guatemala, and Belize.
  2. a state in SE Mexico, in N Yucatán Peninsula. 14,868 sq. mi. (38,510 sq. km). Capital: Mérida.
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Also Yu·ca·tan [yoo-kuh-tan] /ˌyu kəˈtæn/.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for merida

Contemporary Examples of merida

Historical Examples of merida

  • The official date of the founding of the city of Merida was Jan. 6, 1542.

  • The capital city, Merida, lies in the north-west part of the state.

    Mexico

    Charles Reginald Enock

  • The crop of sisal-hemp is shipped mainly from Progresso and Merida.

    Commercial Geography

    Jacques W. Redway

  • And Merida is in no sense a noble city; never has been and never can be.

    The American Egypt

    Channing Arnold

  • There are hundreds of these cabs in Merida, and everybody uses them all the time.

    The American Egypt

    Channing Arnold

British Dictionary definitions for merida

Mérida

noun
  1. a city in SE Mexico, capital of Yucatán state: founded in 1542 on the site of the ancient Mayan city of T'ho; centre of the henequen industry; university. Pop: 919 000 (2005 est)
  2. a city in W Venezuela: founded in 1558 by Spanish conquistadores; University of Los Andes (1785). Pop: 319 000 (2005 est)
  3. a market town in W Spain, in Extremadura, on the Guadiana River: founded in 25 bc; became the capital of Lusitania and one of the chief cities of Iberia. Pop: 52 110 (2003 est)Latin name: Augusta Emerita
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Yucatán

noun
  1. a state of SE Mexico, occupying the N part of the Yucatán peninsula. Capital: Mérida. Pop: 1 655 707 (2000). Area: 39 340 sq km (15 186 sq miles)
  2. a peninsula of Central America between the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, including the Mexican states of Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo, and part of Belize: a centre of Mayan civilization from about 100 bc to the 18th century. Area: about 181 300 sq km (70 000 sq miles)
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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 merida

Yucatan

said to be from a local word meaning "massacre."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
merida in Culture

Yucatán

[(yooh-kuh-tan, yooh-kuh-tahn)]

Peninsula mostly in southeastern Mexico, separating the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico.

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Note

It is the location of many Mayan ruins.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.