Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for zaire. Search instead for zaires.
Jump To:

zaire

1 American  
[zah-eer, zah-eer] / zɑˈɪər, ˈzɑ ɪər /

noun

  • zaire
    plural
  1. a paper money and monetary unit of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, equal to 100 makuta.


Zaire 2 American  
[zah-eer, zah-eer] / zɑˈɪər, ˈzɑ ɪər /
Or Zaïre

noun

  1. Republic of Zaire, a former name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

  2. official name within the Democratic Republic of the Congo of the Congo River (the term Congo River is more widely used elsewhere).


Zaïre British  
/ zɑːˈɪə /

noun

  1. the former name (1971–97) of the Democratic Republic of Congo

  2. (formerly) the Zaïrian name (1971–97) for the (River) Congo

"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

Zaire Cultural  
  1. See Democratic Republic of Congo.


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms


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.

See Examples For:

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 Jules Verne

Approved vaccines are only effective against the Zaire strain, which is responsible for the largest-known Ebola outbreak to date.

From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026

He was only booked and Zaire lost 3-0; they were allowed home but President Mobutu cut their funding.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026

The Democratic Republic of Congo stymied Portugal in its first visit to the tournament since appearing as Zaire in 1974.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 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

For that matter you can’t even go to the Congo; it’s Zaire.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

The Ervebo vaccine does help protect against the Zaïre species of Ebola but currently there are no proven vaccines or treatments for Bundibugyo.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

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

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

Finally Ali reclaimed his crown in Kinshasa, Zaïre.

From Time Magazine Archive

I saw at once that if I was not careful I should provoke laughter, and instantly imagined that I would pretend to believe the clinging drapery was the wounded Zaïre grasping me behind.

From Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science Volume 15, No. 85, January, 1875 by Various

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Look it up. Learn it forever.

Remember new words for good with VocabTrainer. Expand your vocabulary effortlessly with personalized learning tools that adapt to your goals.

Take me to Vocabulary.com