archipelago

noun

ar·chi·pel·a·go ˌär-kə-ˈpe-lə-ˌgō

ˌär-chə-

plural archipelagoes or archipelagos

: an expanse of water with many scattered islands

: a group of islands

: 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

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Superintendent Rod Morrison, whose district spans an area of Alaska’s southern archipelago that’s roughly the size of Connecticut, said his district’s list of maintenance needs is seemingly endless. —Emily Schwing, ProPublica, 4 Mar. 2025 Superintendent Rod Morrison, whose district spans an area of Alaska's southern archipelago that's roughly the size of Connecticut, said his district's list of maintenance needs is seemingly endless. —Emily Schwing, NPR, 4 Mar. 2025 Orcas Island is part of the archipelago known as the San Juan Islands, which comprises dozens of islands and reefs in the northern part of Puget Sound. —Alex Sundby, CBS News, 3 Mar. 2025 From the geological formation of the archipelago to the 21st century, Picó’s critical text spans topics ranging from indigenous culture, Spanish colonial rule, nationalist movements and class structures. —Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 12 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for archipelago