tropical
Americanadjective
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pertaining to, characteristic of, occurring in, or inhabiting the tropics, especially the humid tropics.
tropical flowers.
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very hot and humid.
a tropical climate.
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designed for use in the tropics or in very hot weather (often used in combination).
tropical-weight woolens.
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of or relating to either or both of the astronomical tropics.
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pertaining to, characterized by, or of the nature of a trope or tropes; metaphorical.
noun
adjective
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situated in, used in, characteristic of, or relating to the tropics
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(of weather) very hot, esp when humid
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rhetoric of or relating to a trope
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tropical
Explanation
Our planet’s tropical regions, located just north and south of the equator, are known for being warm and humid. Some people think tropical areas make ideal vacation spots; others think they’re just good places for getting mosquito bites. This word calls for a crash course in geography. If you stand at Earth’s equator at certain times of the year, you’ll see the Sun directly overhead. However, the Sun “wanders” a bit, and sometimes you have to move north or south to see the Sun right above you; latitude lines called tropics show just how far north and south you have to go. The region between each tropic and the equator is considered tropical. For more details, see your travel agent.
Vocabulary lists containing tropical
The Sweltering Words of Summer
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Weather and Climate - Introductory
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The United States
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Instead, the study showed that tropical rivers already tend to have lower oxygen concentrations, making them especially vulnerable when oxygen levels continue to drop.
From Science Daily • May 17, 2026
Bulgarian singer Dara has the night's best staging on Bangaranga - a nonsensical typhoon of tropical pop, based around a word from Jamaican patois that means "a joyful kind of disorder".
From BBC • May 15, 2026
This is a "neglected tropical disease" and further research could reveal a longer or shorter incubation period, he said.
From Barron's • May 13, 2026
These conditions are visibly satisfied by Season 3 of “The White Lotus,” which highlights the tropical splendor of the country and poured tens of millions of dollars into the local economy.
From Los Angeles Times • May 11, 2026
That was another thing about Leon: soft and charming in company, but through his jacket his arm had the consistency of tropical hardwood.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
