landfall

noun

land·​fall ˈlan(d)-ˌfȯl 

1

: a sighting of land after a voyage or flight

2

: a reaching of land (as by a traveler, craft, or storm)

3

: the land first sighted on a voyage or flight

Examples of landfall in a Sentence

From the deck of the boat, we saw our first landfall.

Recent Examples on the Web

Hurricane Polo made landfall in Baja California overnight and is expected to make a second landfall on the mainland of Mexico on Tuesday. — ABC News, 29 Sep. 2026

The rain will continue as the storm moves through the region after landfall. — Kerry Breen, CBS News, 29 Sep. 2026

In July, Chinese researchers also used drone swarms to conduct multi-dimensional observations of a typhoon’s landfall. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 10 Sep. 2026

Generally, as the season progresses into fall, hurricanes near Hawaii become less likely, while the risk of hurricane landfalls rises for the Pacific coast of Mexico. — Nicholas Grondin, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1627, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing landfall

• make landfall

Rhymes for landfall

• aldol
• armhole
• atoll
• awol
• backhaul
• banal
• baseball
• befall
• cabal
• catchall
• cecal
• centrale

Kids Definition

landfall

noun

land·​fall ˈlan(d)-ˌfȯl 

1

: a sighting or making of land after a voyage or flight

2

: the land first sighted on a voyage or flight