Pacific Islands

[ puh-sif-ik ahy-luhndz ]

/ pəˈsɪf ɪk ˈaɪ ləndz /

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plural noun

the islands and island groups of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia, located in the western and central Pacific Ocean.

Usually Pacific islands. (loosely) these islands together with the other islands in the Pacific Ocean, such as the continent of Australia and the Asia-related Indonesian, Philippine, and Japanese islands: There are spineless forms of prickly pear grown commonly in Australia and some of the other Pacific islands.Breadfruit is a tree native to the Pacific islands.

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Origin of Pacific Islands

First recorded in 1795–1800

Words nearby Pacific Islands

Pacific barracuda, Pacific cod, Pacific dogwood, Pacific Grove, Pacific Islander, Pacific Islands, Pacific Islands, Trust Territory of the, Pacific Northwest, pacifico, Pacific Ocean, Pacific oyster

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Pacific Islands in a sentence

Among the Islands By Tim Flannery An eminent zoologist reports from his adventures through the South Pacific Islands.
This Week’s Hot Reads: Oct. 29, 2012|Nicholas Mancusi|October 29, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Hats are produced from it in the Pacific Islands, those from the Hawaiian group being especially well known.
Philippine Mats|Hugo H. Miller
Spines of large sea-urchins are used as slate-pencils by the missionaries in the Pacific Islands.
The Sea-beach at Ebb-tide|Augusta Foote Arnold
So you saw that map among tropic birds and shells and thought it was a map of Pacific Islands.
The Wisdom of Father Brown|G. K. Chesterton

At present the business of obtaining men from the Pacific Islands is fairly well conducted.
The Land of the Kangaroo|Thomas Wallace Knox
Forster does not mention it in his work on the fruits of the Pacific Islands at the time of Cooks expedition.
Origin of Cultivated Plants|Alphonse De Candolle

British Dictionary definitions for Pacific Islands

Pacific Islands

pl n

a former Trust Territory; an island group in the W Pacific Ocean, mandated to Japan after World War I and assigned to the US by the United Nations in 1947: comprised 2141 islands (96 inhabited) of the Caroline, Marshall, and Mariana groups (excluding Guam). In 1978 the Northern Marianas became a commonwealth in union with the US. The three remaining entities consisting of the Marshall Islands, the Republic of Palau (or Belau), and the Federated States of Micronesia became self-governing during the period 1979–80. In 1982 they signed agreements of free association with the US. Land area: about 1800 sq km (700 sq miles), scattered over about 7 500 000 sq km (3 000 000 sq miles) of ocean

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for Pacific Islands

Pacific Islands

Consisting of the Caroline Islands, the Marshall Islands, and the Marianas Islands, covering a vast area of the Pacific Ocean, including more than two thousand islands and islets. Held by the United States under United Nations trusteeship.