archipelago
noun
ar·chi·pel·a·go
ˌär-kə-ˈpe-lə-ˌgō 
ˌär-chə-
plural archipelagoes or archipelagos
1
: an expanse of water with many scattered islands
2
: a group of islands
3
: something resembling an archipelago
especially
: a group or scattering of similar things
an archipelago of small parks within the city
Did you know?
The Greeks called it the Aegean Pelagos and the Italians referred to it as Arcipelago (meaning "chief sea"), but English speakers now call it the Aegean Sea. Numerous islands dot its expanse, and 16th-century English speakers adopted a modified form of its Italian name for any sea with a similar scattering of islands. In time, archipelago came to refer to the groups of islands themselves, and now it is often used figuratively, as in, for example, "an archipelago of high-rise buildings."
Examples of archipelago in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Bermuda – now under a hurricane warning – faces a rare one-two punch from the storms, as Humberto brushes by the archipelago Tuesday followed by a direct hit from Imelda.
—
Briana Waxman, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2025
Malta Come to this tiny three-island archipelago nation in the southern Mediterranean for a thrilling cultural mashup.
—Chloe Arrojado, AFAR Media, 26 Sep. 2025
This storm is currently moving west toward the Bahamas, although it is expected to veer north toward Bermuda before reaching the archipelago.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 26 Sep. 2025
The region’s two largest maritime countries, Indonesia and the Philippines, are immense archipelagos, and together with Singapore and Malaysia, straddle key waterways connecting Asia with the world.
—Susannah Patton, Foreign Affairs, 25 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for archipelago
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Briana Waxman, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2025
Malta Come to this tiny three-island archipelago nation in the southern Mediterranean for a thrilling cultural mashup.
—Chloe Arrojado, AFAR Media, 26 Sep. 2025
This storm is currently moving west toward the Bahamas, although it is expected to veer north toward Bermuda before reaching the archipelago.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 26 Sep. 2025
The region’s two largest maritime countries, Indonesia and the Philippines, are immense archipelagos, and together with Singapore and Malaysia, straddle key waterways connecting Asia with the world.
—Susannah Patton, Foreign Affairs, 25 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for archipelago
Cite this Entry
“Archipelago.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/archipelago. Accessed 10 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
archipelago
noun
ar·chi·pel·a·go
ˌär-kə-ˈpel-ə-ˌgō
ˌär-chə-
plural archipelagoes or archipelagos
: a wide stretch of water with many scattered islands
also
: a group of islands
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share