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microstate

American

[mahy-kroh-steyt] / ˈmaɪ kroʊˌsteɪt /

noun

ministate.

microstate British

/ ˈmaɪkrəʊˌsteɪt /

noun

Also called: mini-state. a very small nation that is an internationally-recognized sovereign state

"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

Etymology

Origin of microstate

First recorded in 1965–70; micro- + state

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Without ever setting foot in the palm-fringed microstate, foreign ship owners can pay Maritime Cook Islands to sail under its star-studded flag.

From Barron's • Dec. 2, 2025

Its gravity creates a microstate for the black hole.

From Science Magazine • Mar. 28, 2024

The call for Russian protection by Transnistria, a self-declared but internationally unrecognized microstate on the eastern bank of the Dniester River, escalated tensions that date to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

From New York Times • Feb. 28, 2024

San Marino, a microstate of 34,000 in central Italy, elected openly gay Paolo Rondelli to be one of its two heads of state, or captains regent, in 2022.

From Seattle Times • May 31, 2023

Residents in the European microstate of San Marino have voted overwhelmingly to legalise abortion.

From BBC • Sep. 26, 2021

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023