Dictionary.com

peninsula

[ puh-nin-suh-luh, -nins-yuh-luh ]
/ pəˈnɪn sə lə, -ˈnɪns yə lə /
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noun
an area of land almost completely surrounded by water except for an isthmus connecting it with the mainland.
the Peninsula,
  1. Spain and Portugal together; Iberian Peninsula; Iberia.
  2. a district in SE Virginia between the York and James rivers: Civil War battles.
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Origin of peninsula

1530–40; <Latin paenīnsula, equivalent to paen-pen- + īnsula island

OTHER WORDS FROM peninsula

pen·in·su·lar, adjectivepen·in·su·lar·ism, pen·in·su·lar·i·ty [puh-nin-suh-lar-i-tee, -nins-yuh-], /pəˌnɪn səˈlær ɪ ti, -ˌnɪns yə-/, nountrans·pen·in·su·lar, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH peninsula

cape, peninsula , promontory
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use peninsula in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for peninsula (1 of 2)

peninsula
/ (pɪˈnɪnsjʊlə) /

noun
a narrow strip of land projecting into a sea or lake from the mainland

Derived forms of peninsula

peninsular, adjective

Word Origin for peninsula

C16: from Latin, literally: almost an island, from paene pene- + insula island

usage for peninsula

The noun peninsula is sometimes confused with the adjective peninsular: the Iberian peninsula (not peninsular)

British Dictionary definitions for peninsula (2 of 2)

Peninsula

noun
the Peninsula short for the Iberian Peninsula
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

Scientific definitions for peninsula

peninsula
[ pə-nĭn′syə-lə ]

A piece of land that projects into a body of water and is connected with a larger landmass.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for peninsula

peninsula

A body of land enclosed on three sides by water, jutting out from a larger body of land.

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.
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