pre-Columbian
adjective
pre-Co·lum·bi·an
ˌprē-kə-ˈləm-bē-ən 
: preceding or belonging to the time before the arrival of Columbus in America
Examples of pre-Columbian in a Sentence
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In pre-Columbian times, the area was inhabited by Pueblo peoples; today’s Santa Fe was founded in the early 1600s, and its history as a Spanish Colonial outpost continues to influence the city’s architecture, culture, and cuisine.
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Paul Brady, Travel + Leisure, 8 July 2025
If a flawed family-friendly movie can kindle the audience’s curiosity in pre-Columbian civilizations, that’s a net positive.
—Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 5 July 2025
The area’s pre-Columbian inhabitants likely created the vessels—the largest of which measures nearly three feet in diameter and weighs around 770 pounds—for funerary practices associated with rituals and food, notes Brazil’s Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation in a statement.
—Aurora Martínez, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 July 2025
The forest in the pre-Columbian Americas was not primaeval, in a wild state, as is normally imagined, but carefully managed by Indigenous peoples, who were constantly burning.
—Stephen Maher, Time, 2 July 2025
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Paul Brady, Travel + Leisure, 8 July 2025
If a flawed family-friendly movie can kindle the audience’s curiosity in pre-Columbian civilizations, that’s a net positive.
—Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 5 July 2025
The area’s pre-Columbian inhabitants likely created the vessels—the largest of which measures nearly three feet in diameter and weighs around 770 pounds—for funerary practices associated with rituals and food, notes Brazil’s Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation in a statement.
—Aurora Martínez, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 July 2025
The forest in the pre-Columbian Americas was not primaeval, in a wild state, as is normally imagined, but carefully managed by Indigenous peoples, who were constantly burning.
—Stephen Maher, Time, 2 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for pre-Columbian
Cite this Entry
“Pre-Columbian.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pre-Columbian. Accessed 20 Jul. 2025.
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