Oregon

[awr-i-guhn, ‑-gon, or‑]

noun

1. a state in the northwestern United States, on the Pacific coast. 96,981 square miles (251,180 square kilometers). Salem. OR (for use with zip code), Oreg., Ore.

2. a city in northwestern Ohio.

Oregon

/ ˈɒrɪɡən /

noun

1. Abbreviation: Oreg..  OR. a state of the northwestern US, on the Pacific: consists of the Coast and Cascade Ranges in the west and a plateau in the east; important timber production. Capital: Salem. Pop: 3 559 596 (2003 est). Area: 251 418 sq km (97 073 sq miles)

Oregon

1. State in the northwestern United States bordered by Washington to the north, Idaho to the east, Nevada and California to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Its capital is Salem, and its largest city is Portland.

Before the coming of the railroads, the Oregon Trail was used as an overland emigration route from the Missouri River to the Columbia River country (all of which was then called Oregon).

Other Word Forms

• Oregonian adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Oregon¹

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Interim coach Terrence Whitehead, a former City player of the year for Crenshaw in 2001 and former Oregon Ducks tailback, took the reins of the offense and day-to-day operations of the program.

From Los Angeles Times

A California man was found living secretly in the crawl space of a condominium in Oregon, according officials, who say the man had outfitted the space with a bed, electricity, and other amenities.

From Los Angeles Times

The governors of California, Oregon and Washington announced the creation of the West Coast Health Alliance to keep their states’ health policies unified and grounded in science.

From Los Angeles Times

When Last Chance Grade is closed, the only alternative — aside from steep, unpaved logging roads — is a 449-mile, eight-hour detour circling through Redding and southern Oregon.

From Los Angeles Times

The only other state to do the same was Oregon.

From Salon