Is America a continent or a country?

Question

Why do people say America when talking about the United States of America?
Would the correct saying be the United States instead of saying America?
MY BAD ON THE GRAMMAR?

Answer 1

It's a country. North America is a continent and South America is a continent... and they are called The Americas along with Central America. The United States of America is the name of our country. The fact that we have unified states that make up the country of America is just a descriptive name. America is the name of our country. We further distinguish it by saying that we have united states within it.

Answer 2

When they picked the name of the United States of America for the country, it probably seemed like a good idea at the time, but it is too long, so the citizens have shortened it unfortunately to the same name as two continents.

This causes confusion, as North America includes Canada and Mexico, plus many other countries, so Mexicans and others can claim legitimately to be American.

Answer 3

America is neither, actually. There's North America and South America, which are both separate continents. I actually don't know where America even came from lol. Yes, saying the United States is correct.

Answer 4

America is technically the whole land mass of North and South America. However, they are separate continents. In North America, there are 3 countries. Mexico, Canada, and the United States of America. When people refer to the USA as simply "America", it is just a shortened name, or slang. Its basically a nickname. This site explains it pretty well: www.usameri.ca Check it out, i think it will help you understand

Answer 5

What? How do you not know this. You must be fairly misinformed about the world. America is a country.



The group of continents west of the Atlantic Ocean and south of the Pacific Ocean is called the Americas(Note the "s". This term not commonly used and people tend to refer to these continents separately). Within this group lies the continents North America and South America, north and south of each other respectively. America lies within North America, south of Canada and north of Mexico.



America = United States of America = USA = United States = US

Answer 6

A country.

Because "The Americas" refers to the continent and "America" refers to the country.

And there are a million questions like this every day from idiots who don't know better.

Answer 7

I never understood that myself. I asked a similar question and apparently it is because it was unique at the time. I don't find naming your country after a continent in anyway unique! I find it rather lazy. In that case Great Britain should be the United Kingdom of Europe. Make any sense? I think we should rename America Washington after our first president! United States of Washington! Washingtonians! I definitely like the sound of that!

Answer 8

it's a continental sized republic

Answer 9

or we could just call it the U.S.