Mesopotamia

[ mes-uh-puh-tey-mee-uh ]

/ ˌmɛs ə pəˈteɪ mi ə /

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noun

an ancient region in W Asia between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers: now part of Iraq.

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OTHER WORDS FROM Mesopotamia

Mes·o·po·ta·mi·an, adjective, noun

Words nearby Mesopotamia

mesophryon, mesophyll, mesophyte, mesoplankton, mesoporphyrin, Mesopotamia, Mesopotamian, mesorchium, mesorectum, mesorrhaphy, mesorrhine

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use Mesopotamia in a sentence

This math dates back thousands of years to Egypt and Mesopotamia.
Scientists Say: Geometry|Maria Temming|February 7, 2022|Science News For Students
Early in Know the Stars, for example, we find a little sketch of a 20th-century office worker transported to ancient Mesopotamia.
Readers Love Curious George. I Fell in Love with the Author’s Astronomy Books. - Issue 112: Inspiration|Dan Falk|January 5, 2022|Nautilus
In Mesopotamia, there’s this rich exchange of different supernatural beliefs.
The Worth of an Angry God - Issue 109: Excavation|Brian Gallagher|December 15, 2021|Nautilus
Some of the earliest written records from Mesopotamia include dreams, such as the magical vision reported by the High Priestess Enheduanna, in which she was raised up through a celestial gate as she praised the goddess of love.
Why We Can't Ignore Our Dreams|Sidarta Ribeiro|October 18, 2021|Time

A thousand years either side, and other such “primary states” had also arisen across the world, in Mesopotamia, north China, the Indus Valley, and other locations.
Changing landscapes set the stage for Ancient Egypt and the first nation-states|Benjamin T Pennington|February 13, 2021|Quartz
It started in the south, Chan says, then spread to Egypt, Syria, Mesopotamia, and Iran, as well as to the Greco-Roman world.
When Saudi Arabia Ruled the World|Emily Wilson|October 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
U.S. advisers there repeated the familiar mantra I heard many times during my tour in Mesopotamia… “Iraqi good enough.”
The View of Iraq From Troops in Afghanistan|Nick Willard|June 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Both built themselves new capitals, the Persian in Ctesiphon in Mesopotamia; the Romans in Constantinople.
David's Book Club: In the Shadow of the Sword|David Frum|June 4, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Christians were residing in Mesopotamia more than 500 years before Muslims arrived in the region.
Hillary's Troubling Silence|Reza Aslan|November 13, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Fundamentalist Sunni Islam was gaining ground fast in Mesopotamia in the 1990s as Baathism collapsed as an ideology.
The Next Wave of Jihadists|Reuel Marc Gerecht|March 11, 2010|DAILY BEAST
His most specific charge was that in Mesopotamia they were "spending money like water in looking for oil."
Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 158, April 28, 1920|Various
Strabo speaks of very large bats in Mesopotamia, whose flesh was palatable.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume VII (of 10)|Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
We shall describe Mesopotamia and the nations towards the south, after premising a short account of the customs of the Assyrians.
The Geography of Strabo, Volume III (of 3)|Strabo
The contracted shape of Mesopotamia extends far in length, and somewhat resembles a ship.
The Geography of Strabo, Volume III (of 3)|Strabo
Will those men of the same stock who rule in Mesopotamia submit to govern by foreign advice, and so save the country?
The Cradle of Mankind|W.A. Wigram

British Dictionary definitions for Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia

/ (ˌmɛsəpəˈteɪmɪə) /

noun

a region of SW Asia between the lower and middle reaches of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers: site of several ancient civilizations

Word Origin for Mesopotamia

Latin from Greek mesopotamia (khora) (the land) between rivers

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

Cultural definitions for Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia

[ (mes-uh-puh-tay-mee-uh) ]

A region of western Asia, in what is now Iraq, known as the “cradle of civilization.” Western writing first developed there, done with sticks on clay tablets. Agricultural organization on a large scale also began in Mesopotamia, along with work in bronze and iron (see Bronze Age and Iron Age). Governmental systems in the region were especially advanced (see Babylon (see also Babylon) and Hammurabi). A number of peoples lived in Mesopotamia, including the Sumerians, Akkadians, Hittites, and Assyrians.