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
Corey Schmidt, Sacbee.com, 29 May 2026
The El Dorado County Sheriff's Office is asking for the public's help as search crews continue looking for an overdue hiker in the Desolation Wilderness area on the south end of Lake Tahoe.
—Richard Ramos, CBS News, 27 May 2026
The couple behind the 2020 El Dorado Fire in Southern California were later criminally charged after investigators determined a pyrotechnic device used during a gender reveal sparked the blaze.
—Brandi D. Addison, USA Today, 21 May 2026
Servite united to card a 1-under-par 359 to claim the CIF-SS Division 1 title by two strokes over Sunny Hills at El Dorado Park Golf Course in Long Beach.
—Dan Albano, Oc Register, 20 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for El Dorado
Cite this Entry
“El Dorado.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/El%20Dorado. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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