Siberia

[ sahy-beer-ee-uh ]

noun
  1. Russian Sibirʾ. an extensive region in the Russian Federation in N Asia, extending from the Ural Mountains to the Pacific.

  2. any undesirable or isolated locale, job, etc., to which one is assigned as punishment, a mark of disfavor, or the like.

Other words from Siberia

  • Si·be·ri·an, adjective, noun
  • trans-Si·be·ri·an, adjective

Words Nearby Siberia

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Siberia in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for Siberia

Siberia

/ (saɪˈbɪərɪə) /


noun
  1. a vast region of Russia and N Kazakhstan: extends from the Ural Mountains to the Pacific and from the Arctic Ocean to the borders with China and Mongolia; colonized after the building of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Area: 13 807 037 sq km (5 330 896 sq miles)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for Siberia

Siberia

Region of Russia stretching from north-central to northeastern Asia.

Notes for Siberia

Known for its vast space, long and severely cold winters, and few inhabitants widely scattered in small settlements, Siberia has been for many centuries a place of political and criminal exile for Russians who anger the government's authorities.

Notes for Siberia

As a consequence of Siberia's harsh conditions and its historical function as a place of punishment, to be “sent to Siberia” has become a metaphor for demotion, disgrace, or other forms of status diminution.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.