UK

Language: en

🇺🇸 /ˌjuːˈkeɪ/

📖 Definitions

  1. noun
    A sovereign country in northwestern Europe, consisting of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Officially known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.; Used as an abbreviation for the United Kingdom in various contexts such as domain names (.uk), international codes, and informal references.
  2. adjective
    Relating to or originating from the United Kingdom.

🔗 Details

Word forms

uncountable

Collocations

in the UKfrom the UKUK-basedUK-wide

Synonyms

United KingdomBritainGreat Britain

Commonly confused

England
EN: 'England' is only one country within the UK; 'UK' includes England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Great Britain
EN: 'Great Britain' refers to the island (England, Scotland, Wales) but excludes Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK.
Britain
EN: 'Britain' is often used informally as a synonym for 'UK' but technically refers to the island of Great Britain.

Spelling tips

EN: Both 'UK' (without periods) and 'U.K.' (with periods) are acceptable; the trend in modern usage favors no periods. Always capitalize both letters.

💬 Examples

  1. She moved to the UK to pursue her graduate studies at Oxford.

  2. The website's domain ends in .uk, indicating it is registered in the United Kingdom.

  3. The UK government announced new policies on immigration reform.