one of the earth's large land masses (Asia, Australia, Africa, Europe, North and South America, and Antarctica) any of the seven large areas into which the earth is conventionally divided (Asia, Africa, Europe, North and South America, Oceania, and Antarctica) that part of the earth's crust that rises above the oceans and is composed of sialic rocks. Including the continental shelves, the continents occupy 30 per cent of the earth's surface mainland as opposed to islands a continuous extent of land
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
con•ti•nent /ˈkɑntənənt/USA pronunciation
n.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025- Geography[countable] one of the seven main masses of land on the earth: Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, and Antarctica.
- Place Names the Continent, [proper noun; the + ~] the mainland of Europe, as distinguished from the British Isles.
con•ti•nent
(kon′tn ənt),USA pronunciation n.
adj.
- Geographyone of the main landmasses of the globe, usually reckoned as seven in number (Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, and Antarctica).
- Astronomy, Geographya comparable landmass on another planet.
- Geographythe mainland, as distinguished from islands or peninsulas.
- Place Names the Continent, the mainland of Europe, as distinguished from the British Isles.
- a continuous tract or extent, as of land.
- [Archaic.]something that serves as a container or boundary.
adj.
- exercising or characterized by restraint in relation to the desires or passions and esp. to sexual desires;
temperate. - Medicineable to control urinary and fecal discharge.
- [Obs.]containing;
being a container;
capacious. - [Obs.]restraining or restrictive.
- [Obs.]continuous;
forming an uninterrupted tract, as land.
- Latin continent- (stem of continēns, present participle of continēre to contain), equivalent. to con- con- + -tin-, combining form of ten- hold + -ent- -ent
- Middle English 1350–1400
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
- the Continent ⇒
the mainland of Europe as distinguished from the British Isles