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Vesuvius

[vuh-soo-vee-uh s]
noun
  1. Mount, an active volcano in SW Italy, near Naples. Its eruption destroyed the ancient cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum a.d. 79. About 3900 feet (1190 meters).
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Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for mount vesuvius

Vesuvius

noun
  1. a volcano in SW Italy, on the Bay of Naples: first recorded eruption in 79 ad, which destroyed Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Stabiae; numerous eruptions since then. Average height: 1220 m (4003 ft)Italian name: Vesuvio (veˈzuːvjo)
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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 mount vesuvius

Vesuvius

volcano near Naples, of unknown origin; perhaps from Celtic root *ves- "mountain" or Oscan fesf "smoke, steam."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
mount vesuvius in Culture

Mount Vesuvius

[(vuh-sooh-vee-uhs)]

Volcano, in southwestern Italy on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.

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Note

It is the only active volcano on the mainland of Europe. (Another, Mount Etna, is on the island of Sicily.)

Note

One of its earliest recorded eruptions, in a.d. 79, buried Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Stabiae under cinders, ash, and mud.
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.