Smithsonian Institution

American  

[smith-soh-nee-uhn] / smɪθˈsoʊ ni ən /

noun

1. an institution in Washington, D.C., founded 1846 with a grant left by James Smithson, for the increase and diffusion of knowledge: U.S. national museum and repository.

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Smithsonian Institution British  

/ smɪθˈsəʊnɪən /

noun

1. a national museum and institution in Washington, D.C., founded in 1846 from a bequest by James Smithson, primarily concerned with ethnology, zoology, and astrophysics

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Smithsonian Institution Cultural  

1. A group of over a dozen museums and research and publication facilities, such as the National Air and Space Museum, the Museum of Natural History, the Museum of History and Technology, the National Zoo, and the National Gallery of Art. Many of the Smithsonian's buildings are on the Washington Mall. The institution is named after James Smithson, an Englishman whose bequest enabled its founding in the nineteenth century.

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Example Sentences

Dr. Emily Milton, a postdoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., said combining multiple research approaches was key to understanding the practice.

From Science Daily • Mar. 7, 2026

She added that she wanted to visit as many Smithsonian Institution museums -- run by the US government -- as she could and was most excited about the Museum of Natural History.

From Barron's • Nov. 14, 2025

To understand this development, it might help to consider the Smithsonian’s early history, as recounted in “Smithson’s Gamble: The Smithsonian Institution in American Life, 1836-1906.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 3, 2025

Following Trump’s proposed budget, the Smithsonian Institution submitted its budget justification to Congress.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 30, 2025

James Mooney, a distinguished ethnographer at the Smithsonian Institution, combed through colonial writings and government documents to conclude that in 1491 North America had 1.15 million inhabitants.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann