Continent vs Nation - What's the difference?
continent | nation |
(obsolete) Land (as opposed to the water).
* 1590 , Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene , III.v:
A large contiguous landmass considered independent of its islands, peninsulas etc. Specifically, the Old World continent of Europe–Asia–Africa. See the Continent.
Each of the main continuous land-masses on the earth's surface, now generally regarded as seven in number, including their related islands, continental shelves etc.
Exercising self-restraint; controlled, temperate with respect to one's bodily needs or passions, especially sex.
* Shakespeare
* 2009 , (Diarmaid MacCulloch), A History of Christianity , Penguin 2010, p. 119:
Not interrupted; connected; continuous.
* Berrewood
(obsolete) Serving to restrain or limit; restraining; opposing.
An historically constituted, stable community of people, formed on the basis of a common language, territory, economic life, ethnicity and/or psychological make-up manifested in a common culture.
A sovereign state.
* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-07, author=David Simpson
, volume=188, issue=26, page=36, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly)
, title= (chiefly, historical) An association of students based on their birthplace or ethnicity. (jump)
(obsolete) A great number; a great deal.
(rare) Damnation.
(rare, dialectal) Extremely; very
* Mark Twain:
As nouns the difference between continent and nation
is that continent is an encratite while nation is (label) nation.As a proper noun continent
is (obsolete) the old world.continent
English
(wikipedia continent)Etymology 1
From (etyl) .Noun
(en noun)- The carkas with the streame was carried downe, / But th'head fell backeward on the continent .
Derived terms
* the Continent * continental * supercontinentSee also
*Hyponyms
* Africa * America * Antarctica * Asia * Australia * Europe * Eurasia * Gondwana * Laurasia * North America * Oceania * Pangaea * South AmericaEtymology 2
From (etyl) continent, from (etyl) .Adjective
(en adjective)- Have a continent forbearance till the speed of his rage goes slower.
- A celibate himself, he was of the opinion that marriage was something of a concession to human frailty, to save from fornication those who could not be continent , so it was better to marry than to burn with lust.
- a continent fever
- The northeast part of Asia is, if not continent with the west side of America, yet certainly it is the least disjoined by sea of all that coast.
- (Shakespeare)
Antonyms
* incontinentnation
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) ).Noun
(en noun)Fantasy of navigation, passage=It is tempting to speculate about the incentives or compulsions that might explain why anyone would take to the skies in [the] basket [of a balloon]:
- a nation of herbs
- (Sterne)
Usage notes
* (British) Following the establishment of the Scottish and Welsh parliaments, England, Scotland and Wales are normally considered distinct nations. Application of the term nation to the United Kingdom as a whole is deprecated in most style guides, including the BBC, most newspapers and in UK Government publications. Northern Ireland, being of less clear legal status, generally remains a province.Synonyms
* thede * (an association of students) student nationDerived terms
* First Nations * Ford Nation * national * nationality * nation building * nation-state * student nation * United NationsSee also
* country * culture * homeland * ethnicity * people * race * society * state * thedeEtymology 2
Probably short for (m).Noun
Adverb
- I'm nation sorry for you.