annexation

noun

an·​nex·​a·​tion ˌa-ˌnek-ˈsā-shən 

plural annexations

1

: the act of annexing something or the state of being annexed : the addition of an area or region to a country, state, etc.

The Senate rejected the Hawaiian reciprocity treaty, the purchase of the Virgin Islands from Denmark, the annexation of Santo Domingo and the annexation of Samoa.

—Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.

In the early part of the 20th century, Chinese writers generally dated the annexation of Tibet to the 18th century.

—Elliot Sperling

2

: something that is annexed

… defended their annexations with fire and sword.

—George Bernard Shaw

annexational

ˌa-ˌnek-ˈsā-sh(ə-)nəl 

adjective

annexationist

ˌa-ˌnek-ˈsā-sh(ə-)nist 

noun

Examples of annexation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Now eight months later, Trump has come to Jerusalem and told the same Israelis that there will be no annexation of Gaza or the West Bank. —Thomas Friedman, Twin Cities, 15 Oct. 2025

The annexation question appeared to subside for a time afterwards. —Paula Newton, CNN Money, 3 Oct. 2025

Both Smotrich and Ben-Gvir have long called for the complete annexation of the West Bank, which is administered by the Palestinian Authority in part and Israel in other areas. —Callum Sutherland, Time, 22 Sep. 2025

Kumukahi is wearing a red blouse with an overlaid print of the 1897 petition against the annexation by the United States, written by her great-grand-aunt, and signed by 40,000 people. —Matt Negrin, Rolling Stone, 20 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for annexation

• abdication
• aberration
• abjuration
• abnegation
• abrogation
• acceptation
• acclamation
• acclimation
• accusation
• activation
• actuation
• acylation