Okinawa

[ oh-kuh-nou-wuh, -nah-wuh; Japanese aw-kee-nah-wah ]

/ ˌoʊ kəˈnaʊ wə, -ˈnɑ wə; Japanese ˈɔ kiˈnɑ wɑ /

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noun

the largest of the Ryukyu Islands, in the N Pacific, SW of Japan: taken by U.S. forces April–June 1945 in the last major amphibious campaign of World War II. 544 sq. mi. (1,409 sq. km).

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OTHER WORDS FROM Okinawa

O·ki·na·wan, adjective, noun

Words nearby Okinawa

O'Kelly, Oken, okey-doke, Okhotsk, Okie, Okinawa, Okla., Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City Bombing, Oklahoman

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use Okinawa in a sentence

Once an independent kingdom, Okinawa was taken over by Japan in 1879.
A return to the Okinawa she never knew|Akemi Johnson|April 2, 2021|Washington Post
Brina also explores Okinawa as an overlooked piece of the American story in need of hard scrutiny.
A return to the Okinawa she never knew|Akemi Johnson|April 2, 2021|Washington Post
After the war, the United States occupied Okinawa for 27 years, forcing thousands of Okinawans from their land to build sprawling military facilities.
A return to the Okinawa she never knew|Akemi Johnson|April 2, 2021|Washington Post
Then, her parents moved her to the United States, and she didn’t think about Okinawa for three decades.
A return to the Okinawa she never knew|Akemi Johnson|April 2, 2021|Washington Post

In 2005, the US signed an agreement with Japan to relocate thousands of Marines from Okinawa to Guam, due to public health and environmental concerns voiced by Okinawans.
The real love interest in Netflix’s Operation Christmas Drop is the US military|Rachel Ramirez|November 23, 2020|Vox
Instead, they were deployed more than 3,000 miles away, in Okinawa, Japan.
Exclusive: ‘Pro-Troop’ Charity Pays Off Tea Party Cronies Instead|Kim Barker|August 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On ships, and on overseas bases like Okinawa, the options are even more limited.
Why These Marines Love ‘Frozen’—and Why It Matters|Aaron B. O’Connell|June 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Not only is Paleo flipping evolution upside down, but a second retro diet for future health, the Okinawa, comes in at number six.
The Top 10 Diets of 2013 Are All Useless (Except to Book Publishers)|Kent Sepkowitz|December 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
About the only thing they had in common was being in the same U.S. Marine unit during the Battle of Okinawa in World War II.
‘Something Happened to My Head. I Couldn’t Get Focused.’|Dale Maharidge|May 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Diamond reckons the latter as 0.14 percent of the Dani population—more than at Okinawa.
Savaging Primitives: Why Jared Diamond’s ‘The World Until Yesterday’ Is Completely Wrong|Stephen Corry|January 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The unit which was stationed at Atsugi spent four to six weeks in Okinawa late in 1957.
Warren Commission (8 of 26): Hearings Vol. VIII (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
Generally speaking, they have held true of Americans in times past from Lexington to Okinawa.
The Armed Forces Officer|U. S. Department of Defense

British Dictionary definitions for Okinawa

Okinawa

/ (ˌəʊkɪˈnɑːwə) /

noun

a coral island of SW Japan, the largest of the Ryukyu Islands in the N Pacific: scene of heavy fighting in World War II; administered by the US (1945–72); agricultural. Chief town: Naha. Pop: 1 318 218 (2000). Area: 1176 sq km (454 sq 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

Cultural definitions for Okinawa

Okinawa

[ (oh-kuh-nah-wuh, oh-kuh-now-uh) ]

Island in the western Pacific Ocean; part of Japan.

notes for Okinawa

During World War II, American forces seized the island from Japan in a particularly bloody campaign. It was returned to Japan in 1972.