subcontinent

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noun sub·con·ti·nent \ ˌsəb-ˈkän-tə-nənt , -ˈkänt-nənt \

Definition of subcontinent

:a large landmass smaller than a continent; especially :a major subdivision of a continent

the Indian subcontinent

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subcontinental

play \ˌsəb-ˌkän-tə-ˈnen-tᵊl\ adjective

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Recent Examples of subcontinent from the Web

Monsoon season regularly ravishes the Indian subcontinent.

— kevin lui, Time, "Severe Flooding in South Asia Has Caused More Than 1,200 Deaths This Summer," 30 Aug. 2017
At the turn of the 19th century, the British East India Company expanded its territorial control from coastal cities to the interior of the India subcontinent.

— lorraine boissoneault, Smithsonian, "The True Story of the Koh-i-Noor Diamond—And Why the British Won’t Give It Back," 30 Aug. 2017
After wells were drilled in Bangladesh and the rest of the Indian subcontinent in the 1970s, millions of people have been exposed to arsenic in drinking water.

— giorgia guglielmi, Science | AAAS, "Arsenic in drinking water threatens up to 60 million in Pakistan," 23 Aug. 2017
In the early morning of August 15, 1947, India’s independence signaled the end of the British Raj, the English domination of the Indian subcontinent.

— pradheep j. shanker, National Review, "India at 70: The Asian Tiger Rising," 15 Aug. 2017
They had been engaged before Partition, as very young girls, to young men who were from parts of the subcontinent that became Pakistan.

— muneeza naqvi, The Seattle Times, "Family bonds survive India-Pakistan split, but for how long?," 11 Aug. 2017
Another huge struggle wracked the Indian subcontinent.

— philip zelikow, The Atlantic, "Is the World Slouching Toward a Grave Systemic Crisis?," 11 Aug. 2017
The subcontinent juts into the Indian Ocean, adjoining potential battlegrounds in the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea.

— chicagotribune.com, "Who will win The Sino-Indian naval war of 2020?," 7 Aug. 2017
Small wonder that intra-regional trade makes up barely 5% of the subcontinent’s overall trade, compared with more than a quarter in South-East Asia.

— The Economist, "Hissing cousinsWhy India and Pakistan hate each other," 22 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'subcontinent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of subcontinent

1845

SUBCONTINENT Defined for English Language Learners

subcontinent

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noun

Definition of subcontinent for English Language Learners

: a large area of land that is a part of a continent

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subcontinent

Definition of subcontinent

subcontinental

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subcontinent

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subcontinent

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subcontinental

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