Middle East
Americannoun
-
Also called Mideast. (loosely) the area from Libya east to Afghanistan, usually including Egypt, Sudan, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the other countries of Arabia.
-
(formerly) the area including Iran, Afghanistan, India, Tibet, and Myanmar (Burma).
noun
-
(loosely) the area around the E Mediterranean, esp Israel and the Arab countries from Turkey to North Africa and eastwards to Iran
-
(formerly) the area extending from the Tigris and Euphrates to Myanmar
Discover More
As the site of such ancient civilizations as Phoenicia, Babylon (see also Babylon), and Egypt, and the birthplace of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the Middle East is known as the cradle of Western civilization. The Greek Empire, Roman Empire, Persian Empire, and Ottoman Empire are among the great civilizations that developed and prospered in the Middle East.
A hotbed of religious and political strife (see Arab-Israeli conflict and Persian Gulf War), the Middle East attracted the attention of such powerful nations as Great Britain, the United States, and the Soviet Union eager to protect their strategic interests at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and their access to precious oil reserves.
Other Word Forms
- Middle Eastern adjective
- Middle Easterner noun
Etymology
Origin of Middle East
First recorded in 1875–80
Compare meaning
How does middle-east compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
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.
Thailand is readying to evacuate its citizens from the Middle East by military or charter flights, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said Sunday.
From Barron's
The renewal of this classic relationship came just before geopolitical tensions in the Middle East this past week.
From Barron's
The renewal of this classic relationship came just before geopolitical tensions in the Middle East this past week.
From Barron's
Downing Street's public account of what was discussed was, to put it gently, rather broad: "They discussed the situation in the Middle East," the readout said.
From BBC
This matters because few alternatives exist for the oil-rich Middle East region to keep crude flowing to global markets without safe passage through the crucial Strait of Hormuz.
From MarketWatch
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.
