Definition of DUNAM

dunam

Plural: dunams

Noun

  • A unit of land area, typically 1,000 square meters, used in some Middle Eastern countries.
  • An Ottoman Turkish unit of surface area nominally equal to 1,600 square (Turkish) paces but actually varied at a provincial and local level according to land quality to accommodate its colloquial sense of the amount of land able to be plowed in a day, roughly equivalent to the Byzantine stremma or English acre.
  • A modern Turkish unit of surface area equal to a decare (1000 m²), equivalent to the modern Greek stremma.
  • Various other units in other areas of the former Ottoman Empire, usually equated to the decare but sometimes varying (as in Iraq, where it is 2500 m²).

Examples

  • He knew every dunam of the board, strategically placing words to maximize score.

Origin / Etymology

From Hebrew דּוּנָם (dunam) or Arabic دُونُم (dūnum), from Turkish dönüm, from dönmek (“to turn”). A probable calque of Byzantine Greek στρέμμα (strémma, “stremma”, literally “that which is turned”).

Synonyms

Ottoman stremma, Turkish stremma, old stremma, stremma

Scrabble Score: 8

dunam: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
dunam: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
dunam: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 11

dunam: valid Words With Friends Word