Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A fine wine of the sherry class made in the island of Madeira. It acquires by age peculiar excellence of flavor.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A rich wine made on the Island of Madeira.
  • noun (Bot.) the European walnut; the nut of the Juglans regia.

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

  • proper noun Island in the Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous region of Portugal.
  • noun A type of fortified wine produced on that island.

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

  • noun a Brazilian river; tributary of the Amazon River
  • noun an amber dessert wine from the Madeira Islands
  • noun an island in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa; the largest of the Madeira Islands

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Portuguese madeira ("wood"), from Latin materia, from Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr (“mother”).

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Examples

  • Gonsalie, Jean de Morales, and some of the sailors pulled through the surf and set foot on the island, which they called Madeira, because it was so well wooded.

    Famous Islands and Memorable Voyages Anonymous

  • That race also was a qualifier for the World Championships, set for May 7 in Madeira

    USATODAY.com 2005

  • Jane's inheritance from the uncle in Madeira that Jane is actually a rather sassy, assertive teenager, who knows what is best for her and, very gracefully, refuses to take crap from anyone (though like her author she is a bit of a snob and racist) the repeated instances of the supernatural - prophetic dreams, culminating in her hearing Rochester call to her from a hundred miles away - which make it a magical rather than realistic novel that it is actually a very enjoyable book.

    Linkspam for 24-9-2009 nwhyte 2009

  • Madeira, where these nuts grow so abundantly that they have often been called Madeira-nuts.

    Among the Trees at Elmridge Ella Rodman Church

  • "I say, Jack Vernon," sang out Larkyns to me, across the table, "I suppose you know why it is called Madeira?"

    Crown and Anchor Under the Pen'ant John B. [Illustrator] Greene

  • The king of the walnuts, _Juglans regia_, sometimes called Madeira walnut, Persian walnut, Spanish walnut and English walnut, is the finest of the nuts as far as the fruit is concerned, and is a handsome tree growing to immense size with large spreading branches and almost tropical foliage.

    Northern Nut Growers Association, report of the proceedings at the eighth annual meeting Stamford, Connecticut, September 5 and 6, 1917

  • It is the chief affluent of the Madeira, which is itself the chief affluent of the Amazon.

    X. To the Amazon and Home; Zoological and Geographical Results of the Expedition 1914

  • The actual outposts of western occupation, then, were the Azores, which were discovered by Genoese sailors in the pay of Portugal early in the fourteenth century; the Canaries, which had been continuously discovered and rediscovered since the Phoenicians occupied them and Pliny chose them for his Hesperides; and Madeira, which is believed to have been discovered by an Englishman under the following very romantic and moving circumstances.

    Christopher Columbus and the New World of His Discovery — Volume 1 Filson Young 1907

  • The actual outposts of western occupation, then, were the Azores, which were discovered by Genoese sailors in the pay of Portugal early in the fourteenth century; the Canaries, which had been continuously discovered and rediscovered since the Phoenicians occupied them and Pliny chose them for his Hesperides; and Madeira, which is believed to have been discovered by an Englishman under the following very romantic and moving circumstances.

    Christopher Columbus and the New World of His Discovery — Complete Filson Young 1907

  • The actual outposts of western occupation, then, were the Azores, which were discovered by Genoese sailors in the pay of Portugal early in the fourteenth century; the Canaries, which had been continuously discovered and rediscovered since the Phoenicians occupied them and Pliny chose them for his Hesperides; and Madeira, which is believed to have been discovered by an Englishman under the following very romantic and moving circumstances.

    Christopher Columbus Young, Filson 1906

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