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Suez Canal

A ship canal, about 160 km (100 mi) long, traversing the Isthmus of Suez and linking the Gulf of Suez with the Mediterranean Sea. Built under the supervision of Ferdinand de Lesseps, it was opened in 1869 and came under British control after 1875. British withdrawal and Egyptian nationalization of the canal precipitated a crisis during which the canal was temporarily closed to traffic (1956-1957). It closed again during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War and reopened in 1975.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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