land

[ land ]
See synonyms for land on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. any part of the earth's surface not covered by a body of water; the part of the earth's surface occupied by continents and islands: Land was sighted from the crow's nest.

  2. an area of ground with reference to its nature or composition: arable land.

  1. an area of ground with specific boundaries: to buy land on which to build a house.

  2. rural or farming areas, as contrasted with urban areas: They left the land for the city.

  3. Law.

    • any part of the earth's surface that can be owned as property, and everything annexed to it, whether by nature or by the human hand.

    • any legal interest held in land.

  4. Economics. natural resources as a factor of production.

  5. a part of the surface of the earth marked off by natural or political boundaries or the like; a region or country: They came from many lands.

  6. the people of a region or country

  7. Audio. the flat surface between the grooves of a phonograph record.

  8. a realm or domain: the land of the living.

  9. a surface between furrows, as on a millstone or on the interior of a rifle barrel.

  10. Scot. a tenement house.

verb (used with object)
  1. to bring to or set on land: to land passengers or goods from a ship; to land an airplane.

  2. to bring into or cause to arrive in a particular place, position, or condition: His behavior will land him in jail.

  1. Informal. to catch or capture; gain; win: to land a job.

  2. Angling. to bring (a fish) to land, or into a boat, etc., as with a hook or a net.

verb (used without object)
  1. to come to land or shore: The boat lands at Cherbourg.

  2. to go or come ashore from a ship or boat.

  1. to alight upon a surface, as the ground, a body of water, or the like: to land on both feet.

  2. to hit or strike the ground, as from a height: The ball landed at the far side of the court.

  3. to strike and come to rest on a surface or in something: The golf ball landed in the lake.

  4. to come to rest or arrive in a particular place, position, or condition (sometimes followed by up): to land in trouble; to land up 40 miles from home.

Verb Phrases
  1. land on, Informal. to reprimand; criticize: His mother landed on him for coming home so late.

Idioms about land

  1. land / fall on one's feet, feet (def. 3).

  2. see how the land lies, to investigate in advance; inform oneself of the facts of a situation before acting: You should see how the land lies before making a formal proposal.: Compare lay of the land.

Origin of land

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English; cognate with Dutch, German, Old Norse, Gothic land; akin to Irish lann “open space,” Welsh llan “church” (originally “enclosure”), Breton lann “heath.” See lawn1

Other words from land

  • landlike, adjective
  • re·land, verb
  • un·der·land, noun

Other definitions for Land (2 of 3)

Land
[ land ]

noun
  1. Edwin Herbert, 1909–91, U.S. inventor and businessman: created the Polaroid camera.

Other definitions for -land (3 of 3)

-land

  1. a combining form of land: hinterland; lowland.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for land (1 of 3)

land

/ (lænd) /


noun
  1. the solid part of the surface of the earth as distinct from seas, lakes, etc: Related adjective: terrestrial

    • ground, esp with reference to its use, quality, etc

    • (in combination): land-grabber

  1. rural or agricultural areas as contrasted with urban ones

  2. farming as an occupation or way of life

  3. law

    • any tract of ground capable of being owned as property, together with any buildings on it, extending above and below the surface

    • any hereditament, tenement, or other interest; realty

    • a country, region, or area

    • the people of a country, etc

  4. a realm, sphere, or domain

  5. economics the factor of production consisting of all natural resources

  6. the unindented part of a grooved surface, esp one of the ridges inside a rifle bore

  7. how the land lies the prevailing conditions or state of affairs

verb
  1. to transfer (something) or go from a ship or boat to the shore: land the cargo

  2. (intr) to come to or touch shore

  1. to come down or bring (something) down to earth after a flight or jump

  2. to come or bring to some point, condition, or state

  3. (tr) angling to retrieve (a hooked fish) from the water

  4. (tr) informal to win or obtain: to land a job

  5. (tr) informal to deliver (a blow)

Origin of land

1
Old English; compare Old Norse, Gothic land, Old High German lant

Derived forms of land

  • landless, adjective
  • landlessness, noun

British Dictionary definitions for Land (2 of 3)

Land1

/ (lænd) /


noun
  1. Edwin Herbert. 1909–91, US inventor of the Polaroid Land camera

British Dictionary definitions for Land (3 of 3)

Land2

/ German (lant) /


nounplural Länder (ˈlɛndər)
    • any of the federal states of Germany

    • any of the provinces of Austria

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with land

land

In addition to the idioms beginning with land

  • land in
  • land on
  • land up

also see:

  • cloud-cuckoo land
  • fall (land) on one's feet
  • fat of the land
  • la-la land
  • lay of the land
  • never-never land

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.