Oriental

• oriental

From Middle English oriental, from Anglo-Norman oriental, Middle French oriental, from Latin orientālis (“eastern”), from oriēns (“rising (of the Sun)”), present active participle of orior (“I rise”).

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ɔːɹiˈɛntəl/, /ɒɹiˈɛntəl/
• Rhymes: -ɛntəl

Oriental (comparative more Oriental, superlative most Oriental)

1. Of a pearl or other precious stone: having a superior lustre. [from 14th c.]
2. (astronomy, astrology) Pertaining to the eastern part of the sky; happening before sunrise. [from 14th c.]
3. (obsolete) Happening in the eastern part of a given place or location. [15th–19th c.]
4. Pertaining to the regions east of the Mediterranean, beyond the Roman Empire or the early Christian world; of the Near East, the Middle East or the Far East, now especially relating to East Asia. [from 15th c.]
5. Designating various types of aromatic tobacco grown in Turkey and the Balkans. [from 19th c.]

• orientate
• orientally
• orientational

Oriental (plural Orientals)

1. A precious stone, especially an orient pearl. [from 14th c.]
2. A member or descendant of the peoples and cultures of the Orient. [from 15th c.]
   • 2022, Gabrielle Zevin, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Vintage (2023), page 200:

     He looked at her face. He ran his index finger down the bridge of her nose.
     “Exotic. The last one was an Oriental, too.”
     “Orientals are rugs and furniture,” Anna said. “Not people.”

3. A lily cultivar of a widely varied group, with strong scent.
4. (archaic) A person from the eastern region of a place. [15th–19th c.]
   • 1848, National anthem of Uruguay

     Orientals, the Fatherland or the grave, Liberty or with glory we die!

• Use of the term Oriental to describe a person is considered dated and potentially offensive in North America.

See Thesaurus:Asian

• austral
• boreal
• Asia
• Asiatic
• East Asia
• Far East
• Middle East
• Occident
• occidental
• Persia
• Persian rug

• Tirolean, relation, taileron, tenorial

Oriental m (plural Orientals)

1. an Oriental lily