Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words
1

American

play
noun Amer·i·can \ ə-ˈmer-ə-kən , -ˈmər- , -ˈme-rə- \

Definition of American

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 english

See American defined for English-language learners

See American defined for kids

Explore M-W

americanisms
6 Filthy Americanisms that Aren't Actually American
alt-59c52d6ee2f72
Breathing Life Into 'Inspire'
image1644821030
These Are Fighting Words
young-plant-shoots
Merriam-Webster's New Words Quiz—Fall 2017 Edition!

Examples of american in a Sentence

  1. Americans in all 50 states.

  2. The President's speech began with the words “My fellow Americans…”.

First Known Use of american

1568

2

American

adjective

Definition of American

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

play \-kə(n)-nəs\ noun

See American defined for English-language learners

First Known Use of american

1580

Phrases Related to AMERICAN

Related Phrases

AMERICAN Defined for English Language Learners

American

play
noun

Definition of American for English Language Learners

  • : a person born, raised, or living in the U.S.

  • : a person born, raised, or living in North America or South America

American

adjective

Definition of American for English Language Learners

  • : of or relating to the U.S. or its citizens

  • : of or relating to North America, South America, or the people who live there

AMERICAN Defined for Kids

1

American

play
noun Amer·i·can \ ə-ˈmer-ə-kən \

Definition of American for Students

1 :a citizen of the United States
2 :a person born or living in North or South America
2

American

adjective

Definition of American for Students

1 :of or relating to the United States or its citizens
2 :of or relating to North or South America or their residents

Learn More about american

  1. Spanish Central: Translation of American Nglish: Translation of American for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of American for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up American? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

anathematize

play

to curse or denounce

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. dotage, dotard a state or period of senile decay

  2. otherwise "in other respects"

  3. federalism Graham says bill gives power to states

  4. bodega "Don’t mess with the beloved bodega."

  5. carceral Of, relating to, or suggesting a jail or prison

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

American

Test Your Vocabulary

Merriam-Webster's New Words Quiz—Fall 2017 Edition!

  • young-plant-shoots
  • Which of the following is a new sense of the word bunny?
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Citation

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-59c52d6ee2f72
Breathing Life Into 'Inspire'

The word's origins are quite literal

alt-59c4207ecf106
Let's Talk 'Tea'

Spill it, sip it: just make it hot.

image1644821030
8 Words and Phrases from Boxing and Wrestling

Common terms that come from boxing and wrestling

alt-59c2960017c94
The Ambiguity of Pushing 'Up' and 'Back'

When you push a meeting, where does it go?

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

young-plant-shoots
Merriam-Webster's New Words Quiz—Fall 2017 Edition!

You're going to have to memorize the dictionary again.

Take the quiz
stylized-drawing-of-woman-pole-vaulting-across-gap-to-get-trophy
Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

No tricks, just difficult words.

Take the quiz
Spell It
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Take the quiz
Citation
Citation

Do you know the person or title these quotes describe?

Play the game
Examples: American in a Sentence