El Dorado
noun
Did you know?
In the early 1500s, Spanish conquistadores heard tales of an Amazonian king who regularly coated his body with gold dust, then plunged into a nearby lake to wash it off while being showered with gold and jewels thrown by his subjects. The Spaniards called the city ruled by this flamboyant monarch El Dorado, Spanish for "gilded one," and the story of the gold-covered king eventually grew into a legend of a whole country paved with gold. These days, El Dorado can also used generically for any place of vast riches, abundance, or opportunity. It is also the name of actual cities in Arkansas and Kansas.
Examples of El Dorado in a Sentence
Meagan Drillinger, Travel + Leisure, 9 June 2024
The 2021 wildfire burned more than 221,000 acres across El Dorado, Alpine and Amador counties.
—Lindsey Holden, Sacramento Bee, 9 June 2024
The Dons then outlasted El Dorado Hills in a thrilling 13-11 extra-inning victory to capture the regional crown.
—Joseph Dycus, The Mercury News, 7 June 2024
Shakira last played Phoenix in 2018 on the El Dorado World Tour
Shakira last played Phoenix in 2018, when the El Dorado World Tour played that same venue, which was still called Talking Stick Resort Arena at the time.
—Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, 16 Apr. 2024
Roseville and Elk Grove also added two restaurants apiece, while Carmichael, Davis, El Dorado Hills, Folsom and Cameron Park all had one addition.
—Benjy Egel, Sacramento Bee, 3 June 2024
The fatal shooting happened around 1:30 p.m. on Memorial Day in an unincorporated neighborhood of El Dorado County, about 2 miles south of Lake Tahoe Airport.
—Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2024
Families earlier this year filed suits in El Dorado Superior Court alleging, among other contentions, that the county knew the walkway was unsafe and could have corrected it.
—Rosalio Ahumada, Sacramento Bee, 22 May 2024
There was Carlson’s walk-off against El Dorado in a 1-0 opening playoff win.
—Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'El Dorado.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near El Dorado
Cite this Entry
“El Dorado.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/El%20Dorado. Accessed 18 Jun. 2024.
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