archipelago Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a group of many islands in a large body of water

WordNet

Ar`chi*pel"a*go noun
Etymology
It. arcipelago, properly, chief sea; Gr. pref + sea, perh. akin to blow, and expressing the beating of the waves. See Plague.
Wordforms
plural -goes or -gos
Definitions
  1. The Grecian Archipelago, or Ægean Sea, separating Greece from Asia Minor. It is studded with a vast number of small islands.
  2. Hence: Any sea or broad sheet of water interspersed with many islands or with a group of islands.

Webster 1913