Republic of Zaire, a former name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
official name within the Democratic Republic of the Congo of the Congo River (the term Congo River is more widely used elsewhere).
the former name (1971–97) of the Democratic Republic of Congo
(formerly) the Zaïrian name (1971–97) for the (River) Congo
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A vessel took us to Cayenne, where we secured a passage on board one of the steamers of the French Transatlantic Aspinwall line, the Ville de St. Na- zaire, which conveyed us to Europe.
From The Survivors of the Chancellor by Verne, Jules
The central African nation has only played in the World Cup once before – in 1974, when the country was named Zaire.
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026
Vaccines targeting Zaire ebolavirus have proven highly effective, and two antiviral treatments have reduced mortality rates from 50% to 35%.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 22, 2026
The buzz: The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s only other World Cup appearance came in 1974, when the country was known as Zaire; it lost all three games and didn’t score a goal.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 21, 2026
The rare Bundibugyo strain circulating in Congo wasn’t reliably identified by most available Ebola tests, which were designed to detect the more common Zaire and Sudan strains.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026
In Zaire during the 1976 outbreak, grieving relatives kissed and embraced the dead or prepared the body for burial, and then, three to fourteen days later, they broke with Ebola.
From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston
The limited testing that was available in the province was testing for the Zaïre strain and not coming up positive.
From BBC ● May 19, 2026
DR Congo - which is currently facing its 17th outbreak of Ebola - is more familiar with the Zaïre species.
From BBC ● May 19, 2026
THE BUILDUP: Foreman and Ali spent much of the middle of 1974 training in Zaïre, getting acclimated to its tropical climate.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 4, 2016
In fact, they are also a little nervous about being caught in Zaïre in the event of another rebel attack.
From Time Magazine Archive
M. Provost, my professor, had not wanted me to compete in Zaïre, but I had insisted.
From My Double Life The Memoirs of Sarah Bernhardt by Bernhardt, Sarah
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.
