Pompeii

American  

[pom-pey, -pey-ee] / pɒmˈpeɪ, -ˈpeɪ i /

noun

1. an ancient city in SW Italy, on the Bay of Naples: it was buried along with Herculaneum by an eruption of nearby Mount Vesuvius in a.d. 79; much of the city has been excavated.

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Pompeii British  

/ pɒmˈpeɪiː /

noun

1. an ancient city in Italy, southeast of Naples: buried by an eruption of Vesuvius (79 _ad ); excavation of the site, which is extremely well preserved, began in 1748

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Pompeii Cultural  

1. A city of the Roman Empire, on the Italian seacoast, that was known for the luxury and dissipated ways of its citizens. It was destroyed in the first century by an eruption of nearby Mount Vesuvius.

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Example Sentences

The concert will also feature performances from Bastille frontman Dan Smith, who will join the orchestra for a rendition of the band's hit Pompeii, which featured in Planet Earth III.

From BBC • May 7, 2026

To mark his first anniversary in office on Friday, he will begin an extensive tour of Italy over the coming months with a visit to Pompeii and Naples.

From Barron's • May 6, 2026

Nearly 2,000-year-old Pompeii victim comes alive, thanks to AI.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 28, 2026

In a similar spirit of upcycling, his exhibition shows Rose Salane’s newest project from Pompeii featuring rocks and other ephemera taken from the historic site.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2026

Remember the rumbling we all felt under the beauty of Paris, as though the city had been built in abeyance of Pompeii.

From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates