Mississippi

[mis-uh-sip-ee]

noun

a state in the S United States. 47,716 sq. mi. (123,585 sq. km). Capital: Jackson. Abbreviation: MS (for use with zip code), Miss.

a river flowing S from N Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico: the principal river of the U.S. 2470 miles (3975 km) long; from the headwaters of the Missouri to the Gulf of Mexico 3988 miles (6418 km) long.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for mississippi

Contemporary Examples of mississippi

Saved from the public gallows, Weeks was virtually exiled from the city, and wound up in Mississippi, where he raised a family.
New York’s Most Tragic Ghost Loves Minimalist Swedish Fashion
Nina Strochlic
January 8, 2015
Even other men of color considered Revels a curious figure, for Mississippi had never had a large free black population.
The Black Man Who Replaced Jefferson Davis in the Senate
Philip Dray
January 7, 2015
As zealots poured in from Arkansas and Mississippi, a wire service reporter got punched in the ribs.
The Louisiana Racists Who Courted Steve Scalise
Jason Berry
January 3, 2015
No—the way the Democratic Party can best help the poor people of Mississippi is to control Congress and the White House.
Seriously, Democrats: You’re Done in Dixie
Michael Tomasky
December 10, 2014
Phyllis, who was a nurse, went down to Mississippi to provide medical care for people like Joan.
Eric Garner Protests: ‘It’s Like Vietnam’
Abby Haglage, Caitlin Dickson, Jacob Siegel, Chris Allbritton
December 5, 2014

Historical Examples of mississippi

A territory bounded by the Mississippi has been extended from sea to sea.
United States Presidents' Inaugural Speeches
Various
Mississippi was disloyal, and didn't deserve to have any representative.
Punchinello, Vol. 1, No. 2, April 9, 1870
Various
So this was Bellevue, one of the great cotton plantations of Mississippi.
The Rock of Chickamauga
Joseph A. Altsheler
He felt that only the Mississippi, that life-line connecting him with the North, could save him.
The Rock of Chickamauga
Joseph A. Altsheler
It was applied to the cable across the Mississippi, at St. Louis, in 1850.
Cleveland Past and Present
Maurice Joblin

British Dictionary definitions for mississippi

Mississippi

noun

a state of the southeastern US, on the Gulf of Mexico: consists of a largely forested undulating plain, with swampy regions in the northwest and on the coast, the Mississippi River forming the W border; cotton, rice, and oil. Capital: Jackson. Pop: 2 881 281 (2003 est). Area: 122 496 sq km (47 296 sq miles)Abbreviation: Miss, (with zip code) MS

a river in the central US, rising in NW Minnesota and flowing generally south to the Gulf of Mexico through several mouths, known as the Passes: the second longest river in North America (after its tributary, the Missouri), with the third largest drainage basin in the world (after the Amazon and the Congo). Length: 3780 km (2348 miles)

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 mississippi

Mississippi

originally as the name of the river, from French, from Algonquian (French missionaries first penetrated the river valley in its upper reaches), literally "big river;" cf. Ojibwa mshi- "big," ziibi "river." Organized as a U.S. territory 1798; admitted as a state 1817. Related: Mississippian.

mississippi in Culture

Mississippi

State in the southern United States bordered by Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico and Louisiana to the south, and Louisiana and Arkansas to the west. Its capital and largest city is Jackson.

Note

Its name comes from the Mississippi River, which forms most of the state's western border.

Note

One of the Confederate states during the Civil War.