country and nation share a recorded sense, so the question is not what they mean but which one fits. country means “a politically organized body of people under a single government”. nation means “a politically organized body of people under a single government”. country is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈkʌntɹi/
1.n.a politically organized body of people under a single government
“the state has elected a new president”
2.n.the territory occupied by a nation
“he returned to the land of his birth”
3.n.the people who live in a nation or country
“a statement that sums up the nation's mood”
/ˈneɪʃən/
1.n.a politically organized body of people under a single government
“the state has elected a new president”
2.n.the people who live in a nation or country
“a statement that sums up the nation's mood”
3.n.United States prohibitionist who raided saloons and destroyed bottles of liquor with a hatchet (1846-1911)
| country | nation | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈkʌntɹi/ | /ˈneɪʃən/ |
| Said | KUHN-tree | NAY-shuhn |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| Letters | 7 | 6 |
| Parts of speech | noun | noun |
| Senses | 5 | 4 |
| How common | Core | Common |
| Synonyms | state, nation, land | state, country, land |
Full entry for country · Full entry for nation · More comparisons