land

noun, often attributive

\ ˈland

Definition of land

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : the solid part of the surface of the earth also : a corresponding part of a celestial body (such as the moon)

b : ground or soil of a specified situation, nature, or quality dry land

c : the surface of the earth and all its natural resources

2 : a portion of the earth's solid surface distinguishable by boundaries or ownership bought land in the country : such as

a : country the finest cheese in all the land

b : a rural area characterized by farming or ranching also : farming or ranching as a way of life wanted to move back to the land

3 : realm, domain in the land of dreams —sometimes used in combination TV-land

4 : the people of a country the land rose in rebellion

5 : an area of a partly machined surface (such as the inside of a gun barrel) that is left without machining

land

verb

landed; landing; lands

Definition of land (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

1 : to set or put on shore from a ship : disembark

2a : to set down after conveying

b : to cause to reach or come to rest in a particular place never landed a punch

c : to bring to a specified condition his wit landed him in trouble

d : to bring to a landing land an airplane

e : to complete successfully by landing the skater landed all her jumps

3a : to catch and bring in land a fish

b : gain, secure land a job landed the leading role

intransitive verb

1a : to go ashore from a ship : disembark

b of a ship or boat : to touch at a place on shore

2a : to come to the end of a course or to a stage in a journey : arrive took a wrong turn and landed on a dead-end street

b : to come to be in a condition or situation landed in jail

c : to strike or meet a surface (as after a fall) landed on my head

d : to alight on a surface

Land

biographical name

\ ˈland

Definition of Land (Entry 3 of 3)

Edwin Herbert 1909–1991 American inventor and industrialist

Other Words from land Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about land

Keep scrolling for more

Synonyms for land

Synonyms: Noun

commonwealth, country, nation, sovereignty (also sovranty), state

Synonyms: Verb

anchor, dock

Examples of land in a Sentence

Noun

the land along the highway The land stretched as far as you could see. They cleared some land to grow crops. After two days of sailing, we were miles from land. They invaded the country by land and by sea. They own land in Alaska. They bought some land and built a house. His lands extend as far as the eye can see. He was the most powerful politician in the land. the lands of the Far East

Verb

The plane landed on the runway. We watched the seaplanes landing on the water. The bird landed in a tree. A butterfly landed on the flower. Our flight was scheduled to land in Pittsburgh at 4:00. It was raining heavily at the airport when we landed. The pilot was able to land the plane on the runway. The golf ball landed in the trees. I could not see where the ball landed. The cat fell from the tree but landed on its feet.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Some speculate that the goal is to clear homeless encampments by moving people into government-run shelters on federal land. — Benjamin Oreskes, Los Angeles Times, "Trump loves to attack California on homelessness. Will he do it again during his visit?," 17 Sep. 2019 But the costs of building wind farms at sea are still nearly twice as high as on land. — Christopher Martin, Fortune, "Why Bill Gates Thinks It’s Time to End Subsidies for Wind and Solar Power," 17 Sep. 2019 All measurements, whether made at sea, on land, or in space, bear some degree of uncertainty. — BostonGlobe.com, "How deep is the deep end of the ocean? The answer turns on an array of factors nearly as wide as the sea itself: the barometric pressure over the site in question, the seawater’s density and temperature, the vagaries of measurement and, perhaps, on whether a world record is at stake.," 17 Sep. 2019 Further Reading The end-Cretaceous mass extinction was rather unpleasant The uppermost materials contain combustion byproducts called PAHs and even some charcoal, which likely represents residue from wildfires on land. — Scott K. Johnson, Ars Technica, "Here’s what happened in the impact crater the day it did in the dinos," 15 Sep. 2019 Seeking shelter The Amazon basin, 60 percent of which is in Brazil, is the most biodiverse place in the world, not only on land but also in the water. — National Geographic, "Amazon fish species at risk if fires destroy river habitat," 13 Sep. 2019 Archaeology works hand in glove here with settler efforts to press Jewish claims on the land. — Michael Kimmelman, New York Times, "Cable Cars Over Jerusalem? Some See ‘Disneyfication’ of Holy City," 13 Sep. 2019 The in-water and on-land event draws unique boats from across the country and includes a boat parade on the 28th. — Phil Marty, chicagotribune.com, "Make history at Mackinac Island’s Grand Hotel, get artsy in Wisconsin and more Midwest events," 12 Sep. 2019 The housing complex sits on land leased from the town. — Emily Brindley, courant.com, "As West Hartford considers proposal to redevelop affordable housing complex, residents voice both concern, support," 12 Sep. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Ortiz was leading Wilder on the cards when that equalizer landed and ended his chances at an upset in the 10th round in March 2018. — Los Angeles Times, "Boxing’s heavyweight division is brimming with chaos and unpredictability," 17 Sep. 2019 On first down, Trubisky’s deep shot to Robinson up the right sideline never had a chance, landing 6 yards out of bounds. — Dan Wiederer, chicagotribune.com, "4 things we learned about the Bears on Monday at Halas Hall, including updates on Trey Burton’s and Bilal Nichols’ health," 16 Sep. 2019 The successor to the Apollo program, Artemis will also make history by landing the first woman on the Moon. — Fox News, "To prepare astronauts for the Moon, NASA is using a giant water tank," 16 Sep. 2019 In 1944, during World War II, Allied paratroopers launched Operation Market Garden, landing behind German lines in the Netherlands. — orlandosentinel.com, "Today in history: September 17," 16 Sep. 2019 With rookie Mike Yastrzemski standing on first, Belt crushed a pitch that landed 400 feet from home plate and in front of the wall in right center field. — Kerry Crowley, The Mercury News, "Tyler Beede leads the way, three Giants rookies combine to shut out Marlins," 13 Sep. 2019 Our kugel is a touch sweet and a touch eggy, landing somewhere between airy and pudding-like. — Sarah Jampel, Bon Appétit, "We Need To Talk About Noodle Kugel," 16 Sep. 2019 The receiver had been released by the Raiders and landed with the Patriots. — Jace Evans, USA TODAY, "Beat a Big Ten team *and* get $1,000,000? Yep, that happened," 15 Sep. 2019 Dan Welsch, who runs Dumper Dan's Sportfishing Charters in Sheboygan, said his boats this year landed 13 chinook that weighed 30 pounds or more, a record high in his 30-plus years of charter experience. — Paul A. Smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "The DNR has proposed increases in chinook stocking, and there's still time to weigh in," 14 Sep. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'land.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about land

Dictionary Entries near land

Statistics for land

Last Updated

16 Oct 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for land

The first known use of land was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for land

land

noun

English Language Learners Definition of land

(Entry 1 of 2)

: the solid part of the surface of the Earth : an area of ground

: an area of the earth's solid surface that is owned by someone

: a country or nation

land

verb

English Language Learners Definition of land (Entry 2 of 2)

: to return to the ground or another surface after a flight

: to cause (an airplane, helicopter, etc.) to return to the ground or another surface after a flight

: to hit or come to a surface after falling or moving through the air

See the full definition for land in the English Language Learners Dictionary

land

noun

\ ˈland

Kids Definition of land

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : the solid part of the surface of the earth

2 : an area of ground or soil of a particular kind fertile land

3 : a part of the earth's surface marked off by boundaries They bought some land.

4 : a country or nation your native land

5 : the people of a country All the land rose in rebellion.

land

verb

landed; landing

Kids Definition of land (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : to go ashore or cause to go ashore from a ship The troops landed on the island.

2 : to come down or bring down and settle on a surface The airplane landed.

3 : to hit or come to a surface I fell and landed on my back.

4 : to be or cause to be in a particular place or condition He landed in jail.

5 : to catch and bring in land a fish

6 : to succeed in getting land a job

land

noun

Legal Definition of land

1 : an area of the earth usually inclusive of improvements, bodies of water, and natural or man-made objects and extending indefinitely upward and downward — compare air right

2 : an estate, interest, or right in land land means both surface and mineral rights — California Public Resources Code