an archipelago off Central America, extending over 2400 km (1500 miles) in an arc from the peninsula of Florida to Venezuela, separating the Caribbean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean: consists of the Greater Antilles, the Lesser Antilles, and the Bahamas; largest island is Cuba. Area: over 235 000 sq km (91 000 sq miles)
Also called: the Caribbean
West Indies in American English
large group of islands between North America & South America: it includes the GreaterAntilles, Lesser Antilles, & Bahamas
Derived forms
West Indian
In other languages
West Indies
British English: West Indies /wɛst ˈɪndɪz/ NOUN
The West Indies is a group of islands off Central America, extending in an arc from Florida to Venezuela, separating the Caribbean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean.
American English: West Indies
Arabic: جُزُرُ الهِنْد الغَرْبِيَّة
Brazilian Portuguese: Antilhas
Chinese: 西印度群岛
Croatian: Karibi
Czech: Karibik
Danish: Vestindien
Dutch: West-Indië
European Spanish: Antillas
Finnish: Länsi-Intia
French: Antilles
German: Westindische Inseln
Greek: Δυτικές Ινδίες
Italian: Indie occidentali
Japanese: 西インド諸島
Korean: 서인도 제도
Norwegian: Vestindia
Polish: Indie Zachodnie
European Portuguese: Antilhas
Romanian: Indiile de Vest
Russian: Вест-Индия
Latin American Spanish: Antillas
Swedish: Västindien
Thai: หมู่เกาะอินเดียตะวันตกในทะเลแคริบเบียน
Turkish: Batı Hint Adaları
Ukrainian: Карибські острови
Vietnamese: Tây Ấn
All related terms of 'West Indies'
Danish West Indies
the former possession of Denmark in the W Lesser Antilles, sold to the US in 1917
Dutch West Indies
→ the Dutch West Indies
French West Indies
islands in the West Indies that belong to France, including two overseas departments ( Martinique & Guadeloupe ) & several former dependencies of Guadeloupe
British West Indies
a former name for the states in the Caribbean that are members of the Commonwealth : the Bahamas, Barbados , Jamaica , Trinidad and Tobago , Antigua and Barbuda , Saint Kitts and Nevis , Dominica , Grenada , Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; along with the islands which remain as United Kingdom dependencies : Anguilla , the Cayman Islands, Montserrat , the Turks and Caicos Islands and the British Virgin Islands
Netherlands West Indies
→ the Netherlands West Indies
the Dutch West Indies
two groups of islands in the Caribbean , in the Lesser Antilles: a former constituent country of the Netherlands (since 2010 each island has had a separate status ), consisting of the S group of Curaçao, Aruba , and Bonaire, and the N group of Saint Eustatius, Saba , and the S part of Saint Martin ; economy based on refining oil from Venezuela . Pop: 222 000 (2004 est). Area: 996 sq km (390 sq miles)
the French West Indies
various islands in the Lesser Antilles, administered by France; chiefly Guadeloupe , Martinique , Saint-Barthélemy and the French part of Saint Martin . Pop: 838 000 (2004 est). Area: 2792 sq km (1077 sq miles)
the Netherlands West Indies
two groups of islands in the Caribbean , in the Lesser Antilles: a former constituent country of the Netherlands (since 2010 each island has had a separate status ), consisting of the S group of Curaçao, Aruba , and Bonaire, and the N group of Saint Eustatius, Saba , and the S part of Saint Martin ; economy based on refining oil from Venezuela . Pop: 222 000 (2004 est). Area: 996 sq km (390 sq miles)
West Indies Associated States
former confederation of countries associated with the United Kingdom in matters of foreign relations & defense