Saint Petersburg

British  

/ ˈpiːtəzˌbɜːɡ /

noun

1. Former names: Petrograd.   Leningrad.  a city and port in Russia, on the Gulf of Finland at the mouth of the Neva River: founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and built on low-lying marshes subject to frequent flooding; capital of Russia from 1712 to 1918; a cultural and educational centre, with a university (1819); a major industrial centre, with engineering, shipbuilding, chemical, textile, and printing industries. Pop: 5 315 000 (2005 est)

2. a city and resort in W Florida, on Tampa Bay. Pop: 247 610 (2003 est)

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Saint Petersburg Cultural  

1. City in northwestern Russia, situated at the head of the Gulf of Finland on both banks of the Neva River and on the islands of its delta; the second-largest city in Russia; a major port, and one of the world's leading industrial and cultural centers.

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Discover More

Because it is so far north, St. Petersburg experiences “white nights” for three weeks in June when the sky never completely darkens.

It is the location of the historic Winter Palace, which was sacked during the Russian Revolution but later became the Hermitage Museum.

The first Russian city modeled after European cities, it was founded in 1703 by Peter the Great, who wanted to make it his “window to the West”; renamed Petrograd at the start of World War I and then Leningrad in 1924 in honor of Lenin.

With the collapse of communism, the city was renamed St. Petersburg.

Example Sentences

Last week his forces hit Saint Petersburg, just as Putin's flagship economic summit commenced in the city.

From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026

Ukrainian drones hit energy and military sites in Saint Petersburg early Wednesday morning as officials gathered for a flagship economic forum in the city, Russian and Ukrainian authorities said.

From Barron's • Jun. 3, 2026

Museum attendance in Moscow, which competes with Saint Petersburg as Russia's cultural capital, jumped 30 percent in 2025, according to deputy mayor Natalya Sergunina.

From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026

With hundreds of thousands of soldiers coming back from the front wounded, Russia's prosthetics workshops -- like the one outside Saint Petersburg where AFP met Dmitry -- have been filling up with ex-fighters.

From Barron's • Feb. 17, 2026

Like London, Saint Petersburg was built along a central river, called the Neva.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood