Nicaragua

American  

[nik-uh-rah-gwuh] / ˌnɪk əˈrɑ gwə /

noun

1. a republic in Central America. 57,143 sq. mi. (148,000 sq. km). Managua.

2. Spanish Lago de Nicaragua.  Lake. a lake in SW Nicaragua. 92 miles (148 km) long; 34 miles (55 km) wide; 3,060 sq. mi. (7,925 sq. km).

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Nicaragua British  

/ nikaˈraɣwa, ˌnɪkəˈræɡjʊə, -ɡwə /

noun

1. a republic in Central America, on the Caribbean and the Pacific: colonized by the Spanish from the 1520s; gained independence in 1821 and was annexed by Mexico, becoming a republic in 1838. Official language: Spanish. Religion: Roman Catholic majority. Currency: córdoba. Capital: Managua. Pop: 5 788 531 (2013 est). Area: 131 812 sq km (50 893 sq miles)

2. a lake in SW Nicaragua, separated from the Pacific by an isthmus 19 km (12 miles) wide: the largest lake in Central America. Area: 8264 sq km (3191 sq miles)

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Nicaragua Cultural  

1. Republic in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the northwest and north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Its capital and largest city is Managua.

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Discover More

After fifty years of guerrilla warfare, the Marxist Sandinistas launched a civil war and assumed power in 1979.

General Anastasio Somoza established a military dictatorship in 1933. He was assassinated in 1956, but his sons continued the Somoza regime until 1979.

During the 1980s, the United States backed anti-Sandinista guerrillas called Contras (see Iran-Contra Affair). In 1990, the Sandinistas were defeated in free elections. In 1995, and again in 2001, opponents of the Sandinistas won elections to the nation's presidency.

Other Word Forms

• Nicaraguan
  noun

Compare meaning

How does nicaragua compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Guatemala vs. Nicaragua

Example Sentences

Their final home match on Friday - a 0-0 draw against Nicaragua that included a missed South African penalty - was described in some reports as "disappointing" and extended their winless run to four games.

From BBC • May 31, 2026

Q: You've said that this book seeks to exorcize the power structure in Nicaragua.

From Barron's • May 21, 2026

He is in the Nicaragua Baseball Hall of Fame, the Broadcasters Wing of the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame and in the Astros’ team hall of fame.

From Los Angeles Times • May 11, 2026

Urbina had fled Nicaragua in 2022 and legally resided with her husband, a fellow asylum-seeker, in New Orleans while reporting to immigration agents for check-ins as she awaited her day in court.

From Salon • May 2, 2026

Woulda been nice if Nicaragua bordered with the U.S. but it doesn’t, so up through México I went.

From "The Book of Unknown Americans" by Cristina Henríquez