Lusitania

[ loo-si-tey-nee-uh ]

noun

1. (italics) a British luxury liner sunk by a German submarine in the North Atlantic Ocean on May 7, 1915: one of the events leading to U.S. entry into World War I.
2. an ancient region and Roman province in the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding generally to modern Portugal.

Lusitania

/ ˌluːsɪˈteɪnɪə /

noun

1. an ancient region of the W Iberian Peninsula: a Roman province from 27 bc to the late 4th century ad ; corresponds to most of present-day Portugal and the Spanish provinces of Salamanca and Cáceres

Lusitania

1. A British passenger ship sunk by a German submarine off the coast of Ireland in 1915. Germany , then at war with Britain but not with the United States ( see World War I ), had warned Americans against traveling on the ship. More than a hundred Americans died in the sinking. The incident worsened relations between Germany and the United States and encouraged American involvement in the war.

Other Words From

• Lusi·tani·an adjective noun

Example Sentences

On May 1, 1915, the British luxury liner Lusitania, famed as the biggest and fastest ship in Atlantic service, sailed from New York on a voyage to England.

From Literature

In an ironic twist, Marconi narrowly avoided travelling on that fatal voyage - he was offered a free ticket for the Titanic but took the Lusitania three days earlier.

From BBC

The sale includes other notable nautical items including an original deck chair that was on the Lusitania, a passenger liner that was torpedoed by a German U-boat in 1915.

From BBC

Lusitania berthed before its fateful voyage became a shamble of auto salvage shops, tow pounds, S&M bars and taxi garages.

From New York Times

Mérida, the capital of Extremadura, was the capital of Roman Lusitania two thousand years ago.

From The New Yorker