n.
Pronunciation: ' ä- ˌ blast, ' o ̇ -, -bl ə st
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural oblasts also ob · las · ti \ - ˌ blas-t ē , -bl ə s- \
Etymology: Russian oblast'
Date: circa 1886
: a political subdivision of Imperial Russia or a republic of the U.S.S.R. or of the Russian Federation