Poland

American  

[poh-luhnd] / ˈpoʊ lənd /

noun

1. a republic in eastern central Europe, on the Baltic Sea. About 121,000 sq. mi. (313,400 sq. km). Warsaw.

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Poland British  

/ ˈpəʊlənd /

noun

1. Polish name: Polska.  a republic in central Europe, on the Baltic: first united in the 10th century; dissolved after the third partition effected by Austria, Russia, and Prussia in 1795; re-established independence in 1918; invaded by Germany in 1939; ruled by a Communist government from 1947 to 1989, when a multiparty system was introduced; joined the EU in 2004. It consists chiefly of a low undulating plain in the north, rising to a low plateau in the south, with the Sudeten and Carpathian Mountains along the S border. Official language: Polish. Religion: Roman Catholic majority. Currency: złoty. Capital: Warsaw. Pop: 38 383 809 (2013 est). Area: 311 730 sq km (120 359 sq miles)

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Poland Cultural  

1. Republic in central Europe, bordered by the Baltic Sea and Russia to the north, Lithuania to the northeast, Belarus and Ukraine to the east, The Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south, and Germany to the west. Its capital and largest city is Warsaw.

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Discover More

In 1952, Poland became a people's republic on the Soviet model.

During World War II, about six million Poles, including three million Jews (see also Jews), died from German massacres, starvation, and execution in concentration camps such as Auschwitz.

Poland joined NATO in 1999.

Poland was a great power from the fourteenth through the seventeenth centuries, but in the eighteenth century it was partitioned three times among Austria, Prussia, and Russia. It was again recognized as an independent state in 1919.

In 1989, Solidarity-backed candidates swept to victory in free elections, but Solidarity subsequently declined sharply as a political force.

The Solidarity movement, which demanded greater worker control in Poland, emerged in the early 1980s as one of the first signs of popular discontent with single-party rule and the communist economic system.

The invasion of Poland by Germany in 1939 precipitated World War II.

Example Sentences

He has also been trying to boost his profile; he recently made an official trip to Poland, inviting along political journalists based in Berlin.

From Barron's • May 29, 2026

Klingbeil and Lescure were joined by the finance ministers of Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain -- a group of countries known as the "E6".

From Barron's • May 28, 2026

The prime minister described the agreement as providing a "generational uplift" in the relationship with Poland.

From BBC • May 27, 2026

It is unclear whether the additional troops for Poland were part of those withdrawing from Germany or a separate group.

From BBC • May 22, 2026

The British prime minister, Neville Chamberlain, issued an ultimatum to Hitler: If he dared to invade Poland, Britain would declare war on Nazi Germany.

From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti