U·ga·rit (o?o?g?-r?t?) An ancient city of western Syria on the Mediterranean Sea. It flourished as a trade center from c. 1450 to 1195 bc but was destroyed soon after, possibly by an earthquake. Excavation of the ruins (beginning in 1929) has unearthed important cuneiform tablets.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.U?ga?rit (?u g??rit, ?yu-) n. an ancient city on the site of modern Ras Shamra, in NW Syria, fl. 2nd millennium b.c. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.