Near East
[ neer-eest ]
/ ˈnɪər ˈist /
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noun
an indefinite geographical or regional term, usually referring to the countries of southwestern Asia, including Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia and the other nations of Arabia.Compare Middle East (def. 1).
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Origin of Near East
First recorded in 1855–60
OTHER WORDS FROM Near East
Near Eastern, adjective, nounWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH Near East
Far East, Middle East, Near EastWords nearby Near East
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use Near East in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for Near East
Near East
noun
another term for the Middle East
(formerly) the Balkan States and the area of the Ottoman Empire
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 Near East
Near East
A region in western Asia and northeastern Africa, often considered the same as the Middle East.
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.