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Definition of des moines
des moines
des moines Lexical Profile
CEFR
B2
Grade
4
Tier
2
Usage
Top 10k
• noun
1
American The capital and most populous city of the US state of Iowa, located in the central part of the state along the Des Moines River.
2
American A river in the midwestern United States that flows southeast through Minnesota and Iowa to join the Mississippi River.
Word Nuance & Usage
The 's' in both 'Des' and 'Moines' is silent, resulting in the pronunciation /dɪˈmɔɪn/.
• Nearby Words
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.
180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Des moines. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 16, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/des moines