Poland

American  

[poh-luhnd] / ˈpoʊ lənd /

noun

1. a republic in eastern central Europe, on the Baltic Sea. About 121,000 sq. mi. (313,400 sq. km). Warsaw.

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Poland British  

/ ˈpəʊlənd /

noun

1. Polish name: Polska.  a republic in central Europe, on the Baltic: first united in the 10th century; dissolved after the third partition effected by Austria, Russia, and Prussia in 1795; re-established independence in 1918; invaded by Germany in 1939; ruled by a Communist government from 1947 to 1989, when a multiparty system was introduced; joined the EU in 2004. It consists chiefly of a low undulating plain in the north, rising to a low plateau in the south, with the Sudeten and Carpathian Mountains along the S border. Official language: Polish. Religion: Roman Catholic majority. Currency: złoty. Capital: Warsaw. Pop: 38 383 809 (2013 est). Area: 311 730 sq km (120 359 sq miles)

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Poland Cultural  

1. Republic in central Europe, bordered by the Baltic Sea and Russia to the north, Lithuania to the northeast, Belarus and Ukraine to the east, The Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south, and Germany to the west. Its capital and largest city is Warsaw.

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Discover More

In 1952, Poland became a people's republic on the Soviet model.

During World War II, about six million Poles, including three million Jews (see also Jews), died from German massacres, starvation, and execution in concentration camps such as Auschwitz.

Poland joined NATO in 1999.

Poland was a great power from the fourteenth through the seventeenth centuries, but in the eighteenth century it was partitioned three times among Austria, Prussia, and Russia. It was again recognized as an independent state in 1919.

In 1989, Solidarity-backed candidates swept to victory in free elections, but Solidarity subsequently declined sharply as a political force.

The Solidarity movement, which demanded greater worker control in Poland, emerged in the early 1980s as one of the first signs of popular discontent with single-party rule and the communist economic system.

The invasion of Poland by Germany in 1939 precipitated World War II.

Example Sentences

Poland, responsible for as much as half of Europe's supply, is one of the industry's key players.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

I spoke with a mother and son who fled Poland; they came to the rally because they don’t want to watch their new home drift toward the system they escaped.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

There was the President of Poland Karol Nawrocki, the sons of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro and former British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who seemed almost unescapable at the event.

From Slate • Mar. 30, 2026

The navy did not specify the identities or nationalities of the crew members on the missing boats, but said it was maintaining communication with rescue agencies in Poland, France, Cuba and the United States.

From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026

The teacher also raged against the colossal loss of territory: Alsace and Lorraine were returned to France and large amounts of land were given to Belgium, Denmark, Poland, and Lithuania.

From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti