Link Centre Dictionary

Mecca

UK/ˈmɛkə/ US/ˈmɛkʌ/ uncommon

noun

1.

joint capital (with Riyadh) of Saudi Arabia; located in western Saudi Arabia; as the birthplace of Muhammad it is the holiest city of Islam

2.

a place that attracts many visitors

  • “New York is a mecca for young artists”

Origin

From Arabic مَكَّة (Makka) of uncertain etymology. In American place names, in reference to the Arabian city.

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Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.