Yangon

American

[yang-gon, ‑-gawn] / yæŋˈgɒn, ‑ˈgɔn /

noun

former capital of Myanmar (Burma), located in the southern part of the country. See Nay Pyi Taw.

Yangon British

/ jæŋˈɡɒn /

noun

Former name (official until 1989, still widely used in English): Rangoon. the largest city and chief port of Myanmar (Burma): officially superseded as capital in 2006 by Nay Pyi Taw (Naypyidaw), though still retaining some of the functions of government; an industrial city and transport centre; dominated by the gold-covered Shwe Dagon pagoda, 112 m (368 ft) high. Pop: 4 082 000 (2005 est)

"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

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.

"I could not as my father's daughter remain indifferent to all that was going on," she said in a speech in Yangon on 26 August 1988.

From BBC • May 1, 2026

Its broad delta lies between the Pathein River to the west and the Yangon River to the east.

From Science Daily • Apr. 21, 2026

"They won since before the election," said one 28-year-old Yangon resident, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

From Barron's • Jan. 26, 2026

The 15 years Aung San Suu Kyi was detained after 1989, under conditions of house arrest in her lakeside family home in Yangon, were very different from the conditions she is being held in today.

From BBC • Jan. 14, 2026

My finger skims the cities of Yangon, near the coast, and Mandalay, the darker mountainous region farther north.

From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023