mother countries

Definition of mother countriesnext
plural of mother country
1
as in birthplaces
a place of origin Greece can boast to being the mother country of democracy

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in homes
the land of one's birth, residence, or citizenship even after decades of living in their adopted nation, they maintained a strong attachment to the mother country

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mother countries
Noun
  • People living far from their birthplaces face long-distance bureaucratic hurdles to get them.
    Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 11 Feb. 2026
  • Their children’s birthplaces reflect their father’s journeyman status in the NFL, having started in at least one game for a record nine different teams during his 17-year career.
    Nasha Smith, PEOPLE, 13 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • And similar scenes of fear and dispossession played out across the country, as Japanese Americans were forced to leave behind their homes and livelihoods and bused to remote camps.
    Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 16 Feb. 2026
  • If an agency is allowed to give itself the right to enter people's homes, the consequences could go far beyond immigration enforcement.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Married couples shared a bed, and one of their younger children might sleep with them, though infants had cradles.
    Bobbi Sutherland, The Conversation, 19 Dec. 2025
  • In the photos, Travis can be seen down on one knee as Swift cradles his face in the sweet moment.
    Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 3 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • For India, clean energy offers the chance to reduce its reliance on other countries in an increasingly volatile world.
    Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 11 Feb. 2026
  • The Winter Olympics are in full swing in Italy, and athletes from 93 countries are competing in 16 disciplines across eight sports.
    Julianna Duennes Russ, Austin American Statesman, 10 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • The students argued that Saratoga must support the tribe because the city rests on its ancestral homelands, which stretches throughout several counties in the Bay Area.
    Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 11 Feb. 2026
  • The Palestinian American poet Noor Hindi and the Sudanese American poet Safia Elhillo described the devastation of their homelands.
    Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Mother countries.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mother%20countries. Accessed 17 Feb. 2026.

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