1
as in plantations
a settlement in a new country or region
the early history of New York City when it was a Dutch colony
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of colonies
This means the seasonal blooms of insects like caterpillars – which offspring rely on at nesting colonies – have been and gone by the time the birds arrive.
—
New Atlas, 7 Sep. 2025
Water safaris Ribsafari in Vestmannaeyjar offers tours of the puffin colonies on Elliðaey and Bjarnaey, where visitors can observe the impressive seabirds in their natural habitat.
—Mia Taylor, Boston Herald, 7 Sep. 2025
These polyp groups are called colonies.
—Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2025
Writers and rulers across Europe and the Americas have looked back to Virgil’s epic as a model for their own founding myths, in the construction of new nations, new colonies, new empires.
—Literary Hub, 3 Sep. 2025
Some colonies contain more than a thousand wasps.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 1 Sep. 2025
Beaver colonies had made a shambles of the upper reaches of the Chickenbone River.
—Ben East, Outdoor Life, 28 Aug. 2025
Town halls, which originated in the New England colonies in the seventeenth century, often devolve.
—Antonia Hitchens, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
Because of the revolts, Compton says, drumming and African spiritual practices were eventually criminalized in the colonies.
—Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 23 Aug. 2025
New Atlas, 7 Sep. 2025
Water safaris Ribsafari in Vestmannaeyjar offers tours of the puffin colonies on Elliðaey and Bjarnaey, where visitors can observe the impressive seabirds in their natural habitat.
—Mia Taylor, Boston Herald, 7 Sep. 2025
These polyp groups are called colonies.
—Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2025
Writers and rulers across Europe and the Americas have looked back to Virgil’s epic as a model for their own founding myths, in the construction of new nations, new colonies, new empires.
—Literary Hub, 3 Sep. 2025
Some colonies contain more than a thousand wasps.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 1 Sep. 2025
Beaver colonies had made a shambles of the upper reaches of the Chickenbone River.
—Ben East, Outdoor Life, 28 Aug. 2025
Town halls, which originated in the New England colonies in the seventeenth century, often devolve.
—Antonia Hitchens, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
Because of the revolts, Compton says, drumming and African spiritual practices were eventually criminalized in the colonies.
—Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 23 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonies
Noun
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Gullah Geechee people are descendants of West and Central Africans who were enslaved on the rice, indigo and cotton plantations on the Sea Islands of the lower Atlantic states, including part of north Florida.—
Raisa Habersham,
Miami Herald,
3 Sep. 2025
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De Boré’s demonstration set off a boom in sugar production on plantations in southern Louisiana.—
Nicholas Lemann,
New Yorker,
29 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Specifically, Shellenberger testified that sources had informed him that intelligence communities are in possession of numerous high-resolution photos and videos of the craft unlike any of the grainy imagery that has so far been declassified.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
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The series builds on The Star's efforts to improve coverage of local communities.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Vietnam maintains outposts on nearby islands, and the Philippines, Malaysia, and other nations assert overlapping claims.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
31 Aug. 2025
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The reef, a narrow, 18-mile-long atoll in the southern Spratlys, is one of several outposts Vietnam has expanded in recent years as part of its current island-building round, which began in 2021.—
Micah McCartney,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Colonies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonies. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
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