Somme

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Somme

(sŏm, sôm)

A river, about 245 km (150 mi) long, of northern France flowing west and northwest to the English Channel. Tanks were first used in warfare during the devastating Battle of the Somme (1916).

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Somme

(French sɔm)

1. (Placename) a department of N France, in Picardy region. Capital: Amiens. Pop: 557 061 (2003 est). Area: 6277 sq km (2448 sq miles)

2. (Placename) a river in N France, rising in Aisne department and flowing west to Amiens, then northwest to the English Channel: scene of heavy fighting in World War I. Length: 245 km (152 miles)

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

Somme

(sɒm, sɔm)

n.

a river in N France, flowing NW to the English Channel. 150 mi. (241 km) long.

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Noun	1.	Somme - battle of World War II (1944) Battle of the Somme, Somme River Second World War, World War 2, World War II - a war between the Allies (Australia, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Ethiopia, France, Greece, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, India, Iran, Iraq, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Philippines, Poland, South Africa, United Kingdom, United States, USSR, Yugoslavia) and the Axis (Albania, Bulgaria, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Rumania, Slovakia, Thailand) from 1939 to 1945 France, French Republic - a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe
	2.	Somme - battle in World War I (1916) Battle of the Somme, Somme River First World War, Great War, War to End War, World War 1, World War I - a war between the allies (Russia, France, British Empire, Italy, United States, Japan, Rumania, Serbia, Belgium, Greece, Portugal, Montenegro) and the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria) from 1914 to 1918 France, French Republic - a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe

Translations

Somme

[sɒm] N → Somme m
the Battle of the Somme → la batalla del Somme

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

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References in classic literature ?

"Des betes de somme,--des betes de somme," murmured scornfully the director.

View in context

I am a nice young man, eh, en somme? You can't warrant my future, as you do your own."

View in context

"They are the basis for the books which are really intended for people who have little or no knowledge of the Somme."

Day that still resounds; THE SOMME Many words have been written about the Battle of the Somme, but there is still much to say, as David Whetstone finds out from author Ed Skelding

REDCAR'S Major Chris Gallacher rightly strikes a most poignant reminder of the significance of the events of July 1916, that should focus all our minds on the terrible and horrific loss of life associated with the Battle of the Somme one hundred years ago (Feedback, 14.04.16).

Recreating heroes' story

COMMUNITIES across the West Midlands are being encouraged to hold vigils to mark the centenary of the First World War's Battle of the Somme.

Communities urged to unite to remember Somme fallen; CAMPAIGN TO HOLD VIGILS FOR BATTLE 100 YEARS AGO

Three years ago he released the book Arras - The Spring 1917 Offensive in Panoramas including Vimy Ridge and Bullecourt, and in 2011 released a revised version of his tome Somme - The Unseen Panoramas.

Digging deep for history

Thousands of Warwickshire men were killed or wounded during the battles of the Somme and Ypres, the two main theatres of combat on the Western Front during the 1914-18 conflict.

Families can pay tribute to Somme heroes

Many Birmingham and Warwickshire men were killed or wounded during the battles of the Somme and Ypres, the two main theatres of combat on the Western Front during the 1914-18 conflict.

Visit graves of 1st World War relatives

It was the shock of enormous underground explosions along the German lines which began the great offensive known to us as the Battle of the Somme. This year marked the ninetieth anniversary of that battle, the one engagement, or rather series of engagements, which continues to resonate in the public mind as a symbol of the 'waste' of the Great War.

The Somme remembered

The 72p stamp is dedicated to soldiers from Northern Ireland who died in Battle of the Somme in 1916.

The last post

But the plan was a disaster and the later named Battle of the Somme saw the death of 60 per cent of all officers involved on the first day.

Wood site will be forever the Somme

RELATIVES of Irish soldiers killed at the Battle of the Somme will soon be able to pay lasting homage to their war dead, we can reveal.