noun
- Also called Mideast. (loosely) the area from Libya E to Afghanistan, usually including Egypt, Sudan, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the other countries of the Arabian peninsula.
- (formerly) the area including Iran, Afghanistan, India, Tibet, and Burma.
adjective
- of or relating to the Middle East or its inhabitants
noun
- (loosely) the area around the E Mediterranean, esp Israel and the Arab countries from Turkey to North Africa and eastwards to Iran
- (formerly) the area extending from the Tigris and Euphrates to Myanmar
n.1899; never defined in a generally accepted way. Early use with reference to British India. Hence Middle-Eastern (1903). Region in western Asia and northeast Africa that includes the nations on the Arabian Peninsula, Egypt (see also Egypt), Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey.