mother country

noun

1. the country of one's birth or ancestry.
2. the country of origin of settlers or colonists in a place.

mother country

noun

1. the original country of colonists or settlers
2. another term for fatherland

Word History and Origins

Origin of mother country¹

First recorded in 1580–90

Example Sentences

Such hyphenated Americans, he said, felt a “degree of accepted and reasonable pride,” and had succeeded in connecting “their heritage to their mother country” and also to “where they are now” in America.

From Salon

“The Black volunteers had learned a lot about Britain at school and most considered that they were in a real sense ‘coming home’ to the mother country,” according to an exhibit at the RAF Museum.

From Seattle Times

In turn, their admissions to international cricket and subsequent first victories over the ‘mother country’ of England came freighted with meaning.

From BBC

She said other patients have revisited their mother country to get dental care, with some of them having "severe dental problems".

From BBC

That made them the only Asian group that felt more favorably about other Asian nations than their mother country.

From Washington Times