Mesoamerica

American  

[mez-oh-uh-mer-i-kuh, mes-, mee-zoh-, -soh-] / ˌmɛz oʊ əˈmɛr ɪ kə, ˌmɛs-, ˌmi zoʊ-, -soʊ- /

Or Meso-America

noun

1. Anthropology, Archaeology. the area extending approximately from central Mexico to Honduras and Nicaragua in which diverse pre-Columbian civilizations flourished.

2. (loosely) Central America.

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Mesoamerica British  

/ ˌmɛsəʊəˈmɛrɪkə /

noun

1. another name for Central America

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Other Word Forms

• Mesoamerican adjective

Etymology

Origin of Mesoamerica

meso- + America

Example Sentences

Until now it was thought that writing developed in Mesopotamia around 3,000 BCE, followed by hieroglyphics in Egypt and later in China and Mesoamerica.

From BBC • Feb. 26, 2026

Mr. Darnielle’s happy place, clearly, is among the ancient Greeks and the gods of Mesoamerica.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 26, 2025

In ancient Mesoamerica, for example, the color white represented the spark of a creative process, while black was the color of death.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 22, 2024

Avocados have been a part of the Mexican diet since ancient Mesoamerica, but the Hass – the most popular variety worldwide today – was bred in modern California.

From Salon • May 29, 2024

The Olmec, he thought, were the Romans of Mesoamerica, a magisterial society that “established the pattern which, through the centuries, was to be followed by other expansionist Mesoamerican cultures.”

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann