American

1 of 2

noun

Amer·​i·​can ə-ˈmer-ə-kən How to pronounce American (audio) -ˈmər- How to pronounce American (audio)
-ˈme-rə-
1
: an American Indian of North America or South America
2
: a native or inhabitant of North America or South America
3
: a native or inhabitant of the U.S. : a U.S. citizen
4

American

2 of 2

adjective

1
: of or relating to America
American people
2
: of or relating to the U.S. or its possessions or original territory
American soldiers
American embassies
American states
American culture
Americanness
ə-ˈmer-ə-kə(n)-nəs How to pronounce American (audio)
-ˈmər-
-ˈme-rə-
noun

Examples of American in a Sentence

Noun Americans in all 50 states. The President's speech began with the words “My fellow Americans…”.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
In July, a U.S. district court in California found Biden’s asylum restrictions unlawful after the American Civil Liberties Union and other immigrant advocates sued, but that ruling was stayed by a federal appeals court. Nick Miroff, Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2024 Vendor and Craft Show, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., American Legion Post 513, 7947 Hamilton Ave., Mount Healthy. Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 17 Mar. 2024 This Jeep is powered by a 4-liter (242-cubic-inch) straight six-cylinder engine designed by American Motors and improved some after Chrysler bought AMC. David Krumboltz, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024 Sitting in the front row of American Airlines Center next to ABC’s broadcast table was Texas Tech alum Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs quarterback who, the narrative goes, shouldn’t have been given the second chance to score in Super Bowl overtime. Bennett Durando, The Denver Post, 17 Mar. 2024 That changed the whole idea of the American Dream to Americans. Catherine E. Shoichet, CNN, 17 Mar. 2024 Medieval Times union efforts collapse as American Guild of Variety Artists pulls support. Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2024 This isn’t the first time JetBlue has come under fire for anti-trust issues: a U.S. judge similarly ordered JetBlue and American Airlines to end their alliance last year, which JetBlue subsequently decided not to appeal. Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 5 Mar. 2024 The actress revived the look for the American Cinema Editors (ACE) Awards on Sunday evening in Los Angeles. Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 5 Mar. 2024
Adjective
As of the end of last year, 81% of the jets that United uses on its mainline operations came from Boeing, compared to just over half the jets in the mainline fleets of rivals Delta and American airlines. Pete Muntean, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024 What started last April, with four American women’s soccer legends trying to bring the sport back to the Bay Area, came to an exciting climax on Sunday when Bay FC beat Angel City FC, 1-0, in its inaugural game. Jason Mastrodonato, The Mercury News, 18 Mar. 2024 With the Glen stuff, with Michael Avenatti, with the people that failed her in her childhood — all this created this mechanism for her not to be believed, and the American public also thought that she shouldn’t be believed. Ej Dickson, Rolling Stone, 18 Mar. 2024 Heesen ‘Book Ends’ Launched in 2022, this 164-foot Heesen is part of the Book Ends collection, owned by an American couple who have had more than 18 yachts with the same name. Howard Walker, Robb Report, 18 Mar. 2024 In the meantime, Beijing makes no pretense of its support for all these and many more challenges to American dominance. Noah Rothman, National Review, 18 Mar. 2024 In the week before April 2, 2022, about a month after Russia’s initial invasion, images of a remote airfield outside Myrhorod, Ukraine, were requested from American companies at least nine times. Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 18 Mar. 2024 Well World Tour starting April 28 in Dublin, before hitting Europe and the UK ahead of the North American leg on Sept. 4 in State College, Pennsylvania. Ilana Kaplan, Peoplemag, 6 Mar. 2024 While Abbott had a higher percentage of successes, Paxton secured important wins in key House and judicial races, said Cal Jillson, an American politics professor at Southern Methodist University. Harrison Mantas, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'American.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1568, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1580, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of American was in 1568

Dictionary Entries Near American

Cite this Entry

“American.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/American. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

American

1 of 2 noun
Amer·​i·​can ə-ˈmer-ə-kən How to pronounce American (audio)
1
: a person born or living in North America or South America
especially : a citizen of the U.S.
2
: the English language used in the U.S.

American

2 of 2 adjective
1
: of or relating to North or South America or their residents
American coastline
2
: of or relating to the U.S. or its citizens
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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