nation
part of speech
noun (a nation, nations)
meaning for a pupil
1) A country, with its people, land and government. tree →
2) A large group of people who share a history, language and culture, even if they do not have their own country (for example, First Nations in Canada). tree →
sense in the lessons
In geography, history and citizenship lessons: «the United Nations» (a group of almost all countries working for peace), «national anthem», «national flag», «the whole nation watched». In Canada «First Nations» are Indigenous peoples. Related words: «national», «nationality», «international».
examples
- France is a nation in Europe. tree →
- The whole nation watched the final on TV. tree →
- The United Nations works for peace between countries. tree →
- Each nation has its own flag. tree →
- People from many nations came to the Olympics. tree →
- First Nations people lived in Canada long before settlers arrived. tree →
- The president spoke to the nation. tree →
- A stir ran through the whole youth of the nation. tree →
note
Countable: a nation, nations. «Nation» stresses the people; «country» stresses the land; «state» stresses the government — but in everyday talk they often mean the same. Adjective «national», noun «nationality» (French, Irish, etc.).
In the corpora
- "Nation-building" means occupying a country (moving in with soldiers and taking control) and remaking its government.
- When Europeans arrived in 1492, tens of millions of people lived in the Americas, in cities, farming villages and many nations.
- The Haudenosaunee Confederacy, also called the Iroquois, joined five, later six, nations in a lasting alliance.
- The Haudenosaunee nations joined in a league of peace to settle quarrels by talking.
- But this is not only the past: millions of Native people live today, keeping their languages and nations alive.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «nation» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.