often attributive
1
: land in or predominantly in grass
2
: a tract of grassland: such as
a
: a large area of level or rolling land in the Mississippi River valley that in its natural uncultivated state usually has deep fertile soil, a cover of tall coarse grasses, and few trees
b
: one of the dry treeless plateaus east of the Rocky Mountains that merge on their east side with the prairies proper and are characterized by shorter grasses and drier less fertile soil
Synonyms
Examples of prairie in a Sentence
Millions of buffalo once roamed the prairies.
The train tracks extend over miles of prairie.
Recent Examples on the Web
Outside the city, Dietrich said, cicadas won’t be in areas dominated by prairie or row crops but rather along rivers and other locations with natural, mature forests.
—
Adriana Pérez, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2024
Professor Young, a neuroscientist at Emory University in Atlanta, used prairie voles in a series of experiments that revealed the chemical process for the pirouette of heart-fluttering emotions that poets have tried to put into words for centuries.
—Michael S. Rosenwald, New York Times, 2 May 2024
It was established by then-president Barack Obama in 2015 to protect the region’s biodiversity including tule elk, relic prairies and riparian habitat.
—Ari Plachta, Sacramento Bee, 2 May 2024
Grizzly bears were plains animals who lived out into the prairies.
—Chris Klimek, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Apr. 2024
Dandelion flowers sprout from the cracks in the pavement, and the property looks like a prairie dotted with the yellow weed.
—Discover Magazine, 4 Apr. 2024
Davis, of Fort Lauderdale, points out that teal are the first ducks to leave the northern prairies of North America and migrate south for the winter.
—Steve Waters, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
Read: Eight books that will take you somewhere new
O Pioneers!, by Willa Cather
This novel, set in the closing decades of the 19th century and suffused with the wide-open lushness of the Nebraska prairie, practically demands to be read in the open air.
—Chelsea Leu, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2024
While the continent was once home to 170 million acres of tall-grass prairie, now only four percent remains.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 19 Mar. 2024
Adriana Pérez, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2024
Professor Young, a neuroscientist at Emory University in Atlanta, used prairie voles in a series of experiments that revealed the chemical process for the pirouette of heart-fluttering emotions that poets have tried to put into words for centuries.
—Michael S. Rosenwald, New York Times, 2 May 2024
It was established by then-president Barack Obama in 2015 to protect the region’s biodiversity including tule elk, relic prairies and riparian habitat.
—Ari Plachta, Sacramento Bee, 2 May 2024
Grizzly bears were plains animals who lived out into the prairies.
—Chris Klimek, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Apr. 2024
Dandelion flowers sprout from the cracks in the pavement, and the property looks like a prairie dotted with the yellow weed.
—Discover Magazine, 4 Apr. 2024
Davis, of Fort Lauderdale, points out that teal are the first ducks to leave the northern prairies of North America and migrate south for the winter.
—Steve Waters, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
Read: Eight books that will take you somewhere new
O Pioneers!, by Willa Cather
This novel, set in the closing decades of the 19th century and suffused with the wide-open lushness of the Nebraska prairie, practically demands to be read in the open air.
—Chelsea Leu, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2024
While the continent was once home to 170 million acres of tall-grass prairie, now only four percent remains.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 19 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'prairie.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near prairie
Cite this Entry
“Prairie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prairie. Accessed 15 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
prairie
noun
prai·rie
ˈpre(ə)r-ē 
: a large area of level or rolling grassland
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