Recent Examples on the WebThe Jamaican dance band The Vagabonds were formed in 1960, and the group relocated to the United Kingdom at the height of the British Invasion in 1964.—Rania Aniftos, Billboard, 16 May 2024 Our guide to the 101 best West Coast experiences brings you essential things to do in Baja, California, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia.—Michelle Woo, Los Angeles Times, 16 May 2024 The actress sat down with British Vogue to discuss her upcoming series, Joan, the six-part ITV drama that follows the true story of Britain’s notorious jewel thief Joan Hannington.—Christy Piña, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 May 2024 From the outside, this five-story, British Regency-style townhouse in Brooklyn’s trendy Park Slope neighborhood looks like its neighbors.—Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 15 May 2024 The tour will kick off May 22 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and will make stops in cities including Las Vegas, Phoenix, Toronto, Nashville, Chicago and more, before wrapping on Sept. 16 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.—Ilana Kaplan, Peoplemag, 15 May 2024 Parts of Montana, the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Wisconsin suffered from poor air quality on Sunday and Monday because of smoke from wildfires continuing to burn in British Columbia and Alberta.—Chantelle Lee, TIME, 15 May 2024 There have also been other crackdowns across North America, most recently in New Orleans and British Columbia, as rising home prices put pressure on governments.—Phillip Molnar, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 May 2024 The study observed 11 northern and southern resident killer whales off the coast of British Columbia, Canada.—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 15 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'British.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English Bruttische of Britain, from Old English Brettisc, from Brettas Britons, of Celtic origin; akin to Welsh Brython Briton
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Time Traveler
The first known use of British was
before the 12th century
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