Square Mile Definition & Meaning

American

Etymology

Examples

square mile American [skwair mahyl] / ˈskwɛər ˈmaɪl /

noun

1. a unit of area measurement equal to a square measuring one mile on each side; equivalent to 2.59 square kilometers. mi 2 , sq. mi.

Etymology

Origin of square mile

First recorded in 1620–30

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The country’s east is heavily urbanized, with a population density about 50 times that of Arctic Scandinavia and Finland, where every square mile houses on average five people.

From The Wall Street Journal

A speck of an island with a land area of 171 square miles, Curacao is 40 miles north of Venezuela.

From Los Angeles Times

"This year's hole would have been more than one million square miles larger if there was still as much chlorine in the stratosphere as there was 25 years ago," added NASA's Newman.

From Science Daily

Now, each rangeland manager is responsible for an average of 716 square miles, making it impossible for them to inspect their entire territory every year, BLM employees said.

From Salon

The company also expanded its service area in Northern California to more than 260 square miles.

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.