Definitions for continent
ˈkɒn tn əntcon·ti·nent

Princeton's WordNet(3.33 / 6 votes)Rate this definition:

1. continent(noun)

   one of the large landmasses of the earth

   "there are seven continents"; "pioneers had to cross the continent on foot"

2. Continent(adj)

   the European mainland

   "Englishmen like to visit the Continent but they wouldn't like to live there"

3. continent(adj)

   having control over urination and defecation

4. celibate, continent(adj)

   abstaining from sexual intercourse

   "celibate priests"

Wiktionary(1.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Continent(Noun)

   An Encratite.

   Etymology: From continentem, noun use of present participle of continere.

2. Continent(ProperNoun)

   The Old World.

   Etymology: From continentem, noun use of present participle of continere.

3. Continent(ProperNoun)

   Mainland Europe, as seen from the British Isles.

   Etymology: From continentem, noun use of present participle of continere.

Webster Dictionary(2.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Continent(adj)

   serving to restrain or limit; restraining; opposing

   Etymology: [L. continens, prop., a holding together: cf. F. continent. See Continent, a.]

2. Continent(adj)

   exercising restraint as to the indulgence of desires or passions; temperate; moderate

   Etymology: [L. continens, prop., a holding together: cf. F. continent. See Continent, a.]

3. Continent(adj)

   abstaining from sexual intercourse; exercising restraint upon the sexual appetite; esp., abstaining from illicit sexual intercourse; chaste

   Etymology: [L. continens, prop., a holding together: cf. F. continent. See Continent, a.]

4. Continent(adj)

   not interrupted; connected; continuous; as, a continent fever

   Etymology: [L. continens, prop., a holding together: cf. F. continent. See Continent, a.]

5. Continent(adj)

   that which contains anything; a receptacle

   Etymology: [L. continens, prop., a holding together: cf. F. continent. See Continent, a.]

6. Continent(adj)

   one of the grand divisions of land on the globe; the main land; specifically (Phys. Geog.), a large body of land differing from an island, not merely in its size, but in its structure, which is that of a large basin bordered by mountain chains; as, the continent of North America

   Etymology: [L. continens, prop., a holding together: cf. F. continent. See Continent, a.]

Freebase(3.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Continent

   A continent is one of several very large landmasses on Earth. They are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, with up to seven regions commonly regarded as continents—they are: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia. In geology, continents are described by means of tectonic plates. Plate tectonics is the process and study of the movement, collision and division of continents, earlier known as continental drift.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Continent

   kon′ti-nent, n. a large extent of land not broken up by seas: the mainland of Europe: one of the great divisions of the land surface of the globe.—adj. restraining the indulgence of pleasure, esp. sexual: temperate: virtuous.—ns. Con′tinence, Con′tinency, the restraint imposed by a person upon his desires and passions: self-restraint in sexual indulgence, often absolute: chastity.—adj. Continent′al, characteristic of a continent, as of climate, &c.: pertaining to the European continent, or to the colonies of North America at the period of independence.—n. Continent′alism, anything peculiar to the usage of the Continent.—adv. Con′tinently.—Continental system, the name given to Napoleon's plan for shutting out England from all commercial connection with Europe. [L. continentem—continēre, to contain—con, together, tenĕre, to hold.]

Dictionary of Nautical Terms(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. continent

   In geography, a large extent of land which is not entirely surrounded by water, or separated from other lands by the sea, as Europe, Asia, and Africa. It is also used in contradistinction to island, though America seems insulated.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Continent

   A defined and known area of land.

   There are many continents in the world.

   Submitted by MaryC on February 23, 2020  

British National Corpus

1. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'continent' in Nouns Frequency: #1894

How to pronounce continent?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say continent in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of continent in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of continent in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6

Examples of continent in a Sentence

1. Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo:

   The outcome of this discussion has been the urgent call for the unconditional and immediate release of General Karenzi and an awakening of the Peace and Security Council and indeed the continent to the grave danger that faces Africa with the abuse of international law...

2. Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey:

   My intention is not to go over and just hang out or take a sabbatical, but actually everything I'm doing in San Francisco, doing on another continent.

3. Malusi Gigaba:

   The drop happened at a time when there was an Ebola outbreak on the African continent. To blame the drop in tourism numbers on visa requirements is lazy.

4. Alanna Simpson:

   Not many people think about the African continent and its potential for earthquakes.

5. Prime Minister Viktor Orban:

   Now we talk about hundreds of thousands but next year we will talk about millions and there is no end to this, all of a sudden we will see that we are in a minority in our own continent.

Images & Illustrations of continent

Popularity rank by frequency of use