Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A large landmass, such as India, that is part of a continent but is considered either geographically or politically as an independent entity.
  • noun A large landmass, such as Greenland, that is smaller than a continent.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A large landmass which is either smaller than a continent (such as Greenland), or part of an even larger continent (such as the Indian subcontinent).

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a large and distinctive landmass (as India or Greenland) that is a distinct part of some continent

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

sub- +‎ continent

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Examples

  • Spanning the subcontinent from the Muslim invasions to the Partition, this is a magical novel about the shapes stories can take - turning into myths, appearing in history books and entering into our lives.

    Salt and Saffron by Kamila Shamsie: Book summary 2010

  • "The subcontinent is pumping out thousands of brilliant technology graduates… and the [BC] Lower Mainland is cashing in on their savvy and expertise…"

    My Canada - Today and Tomorrow 2005

  • The Indo-Pakistan subcontinent is about two thirds the size of Canada, shaped like the head of an elephant, The forehead and the trunk are formed by India, while Pakistan forms the two ears: West Pakistan is four times the size of East Pakistan, but has rather less than three quarters of the population, The two portions of Pakistan are divided by some eight hundred miles of Indian territory.

    Pakistan To-day 1954

  • To understand how they betrayed their own mission in the subcontinent is to understand, in Scott’s words, how “in Ranpur, and in places like Ranpur, the British came to the end of themselves as they were.”

    Victoria’s Secret 2008

  • To understand how they betrayed their own mission in the subcontinent is to understand, in Scott’s words, how “in Ranpur, and in places like Ranpur, the British came to the end of themselves as they were.”

    Victoria’s Secret 2008

  • If you read Columbus logbook, or if you are familiar with the discussions on cartography in the XVth century in Europe, they are actually talking about India (aka the subcontinent), which was known in this way since Roman times.

    Long overdue. 2008

  • The unity of the subcontinent was a cherished wish...

    The unity of the subcontinent was a cherished wish of Sri Aurobindo Tusar N Mohapatra 2008

  • The unity of the subcontinent was a cherished wish of Sri Aurobindo from aju mukhopadhyay to Tusar N.

    The unity of the subcontinent was a cherished wish of Sri Aurobindo Tusar N Mohapatra 2008

  • Savitri Era Political Action: The unity of the subcontinent was a cherished wish of Sri Aurobindo skip to main

    The unity of the subcontinent was a cherished wish of Sri Aurobindo Tusar N Mohapatra 2008

  • Compared to China, the subcontinent is a manager's nirvana (but lacks investment capital).

    Tom Doctoroff: "Chindia": A Match Made in Heaven? 2008

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