peninsula

noun

pen·​in·​su·​la pə-ˈnin(t)-s(ə-)lə  -shə-lə 

: a portion of land nearly surrounded by water and connected with a larger body by an isthmus

also : a piece of land jutting out into the water whether with or without a well-defined isthmus

the Italian peninsula

peninsular

pə-ˈnin(t)-s(ə-)lər 

-shə-lər

adjective

Synonyms

• arm
• cape
• foreland
• headland
• ness
• point
• promontory
• spit

Examples of peninsula in a Sentence

They built their house on a narrow peninsula.

the peninsula is constantly buffeted by storms

Recent Examples on the Web

On The Water Apart from that sense of solitude, a major part of the appeal is clearly the location: on a peninsula with one side fronting the calm, pure turquoise water of the Caicos Bank; the other side, the rolling waves of the Atlantic in varying shades of blue. —Laurie Werner, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025

Those three words were put on a bus that toured the state, visiting fans from the Motor City to the tip of the lower peninsula. —Larry Lage, Chicago Tribune, 20 Jan. 2025

In Florida, much of the peninsula will be spared from the freeze, but it is expected to get to freezing in the central and south parts of the state during the arctic blast, according to AccuWeather. —Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY, 17 Jan. 2025

The Rockaway peninsula’s 11 miles is nearly the length of Manhattan and has the third fastest growing population of all census districts in the city and a business growth rate of 55% from 2000 to 2021. —Terri Carta, New York Daily News, 14 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin paeninsula, from paene almost + insula island

First Known Use

circa 1552, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

peninsula

noun

pen·​in·​su·​la pə-ˈnin(t)-s(ə-)lə  -ˈnin-chə-lə 

: a piece of land nearly surrounded by water or sticking out into the water

peninsular

-s(ə-)lər 

-chə-lər

adjective

Etymology

from Latin paeninsula "peninsula," from paene- "almost" and insula "island" — related to insulate, isle, isolate