mecca

noun

mec·​ca ˈme-kə How to pronounce mecca (audio)
often capitalized
: a place regarded as a center for a specified group, activity, or interest
a mecca for shoppers

Examples of mecca in a Sentence

The valley is a mecca for wine lovers. The town has become a mecca for tourists.
Recent Examples on the Web New Around Orange County Pendry Newport Beach, one of the newer properties to emerge in town, is just across the street from the Fashion Island shopping mecca. Elycia Rubin, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Aug. 2024 The summer 2023 star announcements solidified California’s reputation as a culinary mecca, reaffirming all six of the state’s three-star restaurants and all 12 two-star restaurants and praising hundreds of others for impressive cuisine, affordable meals or high sustainability standards. Linda Zavoral, The Mercury News, 10 July 2024 Those looking for something more than ranchland and winding rivers will find it at the Montage Big Sky, at the base of Big Sky Resort, a ski area and downhill mountain-bike mecca. Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 9 July 2024 Take Stage Kitchen & Bar in the golfing mecca of Palm Beach Gardens, a global kitchen that dared to mash up Spanish octopus with chutneys and naan — and earned Marathe, for his boldness, a 2023 James Beard semifinalist nod. Rod Stafford Hagwood, Sun Sentinel, 22 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for mecca 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mecca.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Mecca, Saudi Arabia, a destination of pilgrims in the Islamic world

First Known Use

1843, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of mecca was in 1843

Dictionary Entries Near mecca

Cite this Entry

“Mecca.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mecca. Accessed 19 Sep. 2024.

Kids Definition

mecca

noun
mec·​ca ˈmek-ə How to pronounce mecca (audio)
often capitalized
: a place regarded as a center for a specified group, activity, or interest
a mecca for tourists
Etymology

named for Mecca, city in Arabia, the birthplace of Muhammad and the goal of Muslim pilgrimages

Geographical Definition

Mecca

geographical name

Mec·​ca ˈme-kə How to pronounce Mecca (audio)
variants or Arabic Makkah
holy city in western Saudi Arabia population 1,294,106

Note: Mecca is the chief pilgrimage destination for Muslims and the capital of Hejaz.

Meccan adjective or noun

More from Merriam-Webster on mecca

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