Two small islands and a surrounding coral atoll in the central Pacific Ocean northwest of Honolulu. Discovered in 1859, they were annexed by the United States in 1867 and remain a U.S. territory with an important naval base. A decisive World War II Allied victory in the Battle of Midway (June 3-6, 1942) was a major turning point in the war in the Pacific.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
