Strait of Gibraltar
1
3.7
- proper noun
:
Estrecho de Gibraltar
- But the citizens of Tetouan don't have to cross the Strait of Gibraltar to visit Spain.
Examples
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At its narrowest point, only 15 kilometers separate Europe and Africa in the Strait of Gibraltar.
Blog text (25) -
Then they defeated a Muslim squadron near the Straits of Gibraltar, known to the Norse as Nørvasund.
Academic text (1996) -
Africans would have to cross either by boat in the Mediterranean or at the Strait of Gibraltar.
Blog text (28) -
It was joined to the Middle East and was barely separated from Europe at the Strait of Gibraltar by five miles, a swimmable distance.
Academic text (2015) -
One of Fagrskinna's two manuscripts is missing four pages beginning with the sea battle in the Straits of Gibraltar and running through the end of the expedition.
Academic text (1996) -
Imagine if explorers like Magellan and Columbus never ventured past the Straits of Gibraltar.
Blog text (10) -
Located on the Strait of Gibraltar, it is a place that brims with historical and geopolitical references to the movement of humans and trade not simply from Africa to Europe but also from east to west.
Academic text (2004) -
In case of war, a Portuguese port could enable the Soviet Union to block NATO shipping movement through the Strait of Gibraltar and to interfere with military reinforcements.
Academic text (1996) -
On October 21, 1805, Nelson's fleet of twenty-seven ships met and destroyed a combined French and Spanish force of thirty-three vessels off Cape Trafalgar near the Strait of Gibraltar.
Academic text (1995) -
As the ship neared the Strait of Gibraltar, the crew prepared for the challenging waters connecting the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a compositional toponym: 'strait' (a narrow sea channel) + 'of' + the place name 'Gibraltar' directly yields the meaning 'the narrow channel at/near Gibraltar connecting larger waters.' The noun + of + place pattern is a common, cross-linguistic locative construction, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Strait of Gibraltar comes from two parts: strait, meaning a 'narrow sea passage', and Gibraltar, which comes from 'Mount of Tariq', named after a famous general who landed there long ago. So the whole name simply describes the narrow sea passage next to that big rock.