Near East

[ neer-eest ]
/ ˈnɪər ˈist /

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, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH Near East

Far East, Middle East, Near East .

Words nearby Near East

near beer, nearby, Nearctic, near-death experience, near-earth object, Near East, Nearer Tibet, nearest and dearest, Near Field Communication, near gale, near-infrared radiation
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

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.