Peru

American  

[puh-roo] / pəˈru /

noun

1. Spanish Perú.  a republic in western South America. 496,222 sq. mi. (1,285,215 sq. km). Lima.

2. a city in north-central Indiana.

3. a city in northern Illinois.

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Peru British  

/ pəˈruː /

noun

1. a republic in W South America, on the Pacific: the centre of the great Inca Empire when conquered by the Spanish in 1532; gained independence in 1824 by defeating Spanish forces with armies led by San Martín and Bolívar; consists of a coastal desert, rising to the Andes; an important exporter of minerals and a major fishing nation. Official languages: Spanish, Quechua, and Aymara. Official religion: Roman Catholic. Currency: nuevo sol. Capital: Lima. Pop: 29 849 303 (2013 est). Area: 1 285 215 sq km (496 222 sq miles)

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Peru Cultural  

1. Republic in western South America, bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west, Ecuador to the northwest, Colombia to the northeast, Brazil and Bolivia to the east, and Chile to the south. Its capital and largest city is Lima.

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Discover More

Peru was the heart of the Inca Empire, which flourished from the twelfth to the sixteenth centuries. The remains of the empire include the fabled stone fortress of Machu Picchu.

Achieved independence from Spain in 1821.

Other Word Forms

• Peruvian adjective
• non-Peruvian adjective

Example Sentences

She places stones in a woven bag from Peru on her daughter’s body before it is cremated.

From The Wall Street Journal

The novel recounts the investigative bread-crumb trail he follows into rural Peru to uncover the background of this vain, mercurial prodigy.

From The Wall Street Journal

Peru that year passed a legal reform to ban marriage for anyone under 18.

From Barron's

Peru that year passed a legal reform to ban marriage for anyone under 18 -- a change Balcazar had opposed.

From Barron's

Until recently, the bulk of the UK's imports of fruit and vegetables came from southern Europe and Latin American countries such as Peru, while airfreighted produce, including green beans, came from East Africa.

From BBC