El Dorado
noun
Did you know?
In the early 1500s, Spanish conquistadores heard tales of an Amazonian king who regularly coated his body with gold dust, then plunged into a nearby lake to wash it off while being showered with gold and jewels thrown by his subjects. The Spaniards called the city ruled by this flamboyant monarch El Dorado, Spanish for "gilded one," and the story of the gold-covered king eventually grew into a legend of a whole country paved with gold. These days, El Dorado can also used generically for any place of vast riches, abundance, or opportunity. It is also the name of actual cities in Arkansas and Kansas.
Examples of El Dorado in a Sentence
Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 18 Oct. 2024
Luckily for the Pogues, archaeologists excavated El Dorado six months after their discovery, and the teens were honored by the town in a ceremony shown at the end of Season 3.
—Monica Mercuri, Forbes, 11 Oct. 2024
In the season 3 finale, the Pogues discover the lost city of El Dorado is real and the treasure lies there.
—Rebecca Aizin, People.com, 10 Oct. 2024
After the local paper writes about their El Dorado discovery, they’re lauded at heroes.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 10 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for El Dorado 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'El Dorado.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“El Dorado.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/El%20Dorado. Accessed 2 Nov. 2024.
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