Suez Canal

American  

noun

1. a canal in NE Egypt, cutting across the Isthmus of Suez and connecting the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. 107 miles (172 km) long.

---

Suez Canal British  

noun

1. a sea-level canal in NE Egypt, crossing the Isthmus of Suez and linking the Mediterranean with the Red Sea: built (1854–69) by de Lesseps with French and Egyptian capital; nationalized in 1956 by the Egyptians. Length: 163 km (101 miles)

---

Suez Canal Cultural  

1. A canal connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas, completed in 1869 and long controlled by Great Britain. The opera Aïda by Giuseppe Verdi was written to honor the opening of the canal. (See Suez Canal crisis.)

---

Example Sentences

Egypt, though not directly involved in the war, has contended with its repercussions on energy, fertilizer and food prices, not to mention disruptions to shipping income Cairo receives through the Suez Canal.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

But the armed group has previously attacked shipping in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which ships use to access the Red Sea and, ultimately, the Suez Canal from the Indian Ocean.

From BBC • Mar. 28, 2026

Oil tankers and cargo ships arriving from the Indian Ocean pass through it to reach the Red Sea and then the Suez Canal, where they enter the Mediterranean, and vice versa.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp replied that Iran should collect fees from transiting ships, just as Egypt does now with the Suez Canal, the officials said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026

What happened was that the Khedive hired a sculptor to make that grand statue to greet ships as they entered the Suez Canal.

From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman