Timbuktu

American  

[tim-buhk-too, tim-buhk-too] / ˌtɪm bʌkˈtu, tɪmˈbʌk tu /

noun

1. French Tombouctou.  a town in central Mali, W Africa, near the Niger River.

2. any faraway place.

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Timbuktu British  

/ ˌtɪmbʌkˈtuː /

noun

1. French name: Tombouctou.  a town in central Mali, on the River Niger: terminus of a trans-Saharan caravan route; a great Muslim centre (14th–16th centuries). Pop: 31 973 (1998)

2. any distant or outlandish place

   from here to Timbuktu

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Timbuktu ¹ Cultural  

1. A remote town in western Africa. Figuratively, it is a faraway and unknown place.

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Timbuktu ² Cultural  

1. City in central Mali, in western Africa, near the Niger River.

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By the fourteenth century, it was famous for its gold trade.

Example Sentences

They are now advancing on Timbuktu and seeking to lay siege to the capital of Bamako.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

Meanwhile, according to Keita, the director of Mali Tourism, about 100 Russian tourists visited for the biennial in Timbuktu.

From Barron's • Jan. 29, 2026

Today, "vast areas are beyond the effective control of the state," Bakary Sambe from the Dakar-based Timbuktu Institute think tank told AFP Tuesday.

From Barron's • Nov. 11, 2025

Traditionally, the group's operations have been concentrated in northern and central Mali - in Mopti, Segou and Timbuktu.

From BBC • Sep. 17, 2025

Elsewhere, in Zambia maybe, or Timbuktu, the men knew how to dress.

From "Habibi" by Naomi Shihab Nye