earth

earths; earthed; earthing

Earth is our home planet, the third from the sun. Life on earth is possible because of its particular climate and the presence of water.

Earth is the most familiar of the planets, being the one we live on. You can also use the word to talk about the earth you stand on — it's the non-liquid part of our planet, the solid ground. It's also another word for "dirt" or "soil." The Old English root, eorþe also had a double meaning, both "ground or soil" and "the material world" or "the abode of man," as opposed to the heavens.

Definitions of earth
  1. noun
    the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet we live on
    synonyms: Earth, globe, world
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    example of:
    terrestrial planet
    a planet having a compact rocky surface like the Earth's; the four innermost planets in the solar system
  2. noun
    the abode of mortals (as contrasted with Heaven or Hell)
    “it was hell on earth”
    synonyms: Earth
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    type of:
    location
    a point or extent in space
  3. noun
    the solid part of the earth's surface
    “the earth shook for several minutes”
    synonyms: dry land, ground, land, solid ground, terra firma
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    examples:
    America
    North America and South America and Central America
    types:
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    archipelago
    a group of many islands in a large body of water
    beachfront
    a strip of land running along a beach
    cape, ness
    a strip of land projecting into a body of water
    coastal plain
    a plain adjacent to a coast
    floor
    the ground on which people and animals move about
    foreland
    land forming the forward margin of something
    forest, timber, timberland, woodland
    land that is covered with trees and shrubs
    island
    a land mass (smaller than a continent) that is surrounded by water
    isthmus
    a relatively narrow strip of land (with water on both sides) connecting two larger land areas
    land mass, landmass
    a large continuous extent of land
    mainland
    the main land mass of a country or continent; as distinguished from an island or peninsula
    neck
    a narrow elongated projecting strip of land
    oxbow
    the land inside an oxbow bend in a river
    peninsula
    a large mass of land projecting into a body of water
    champaign, field, plain
    extensive tract of level open land
    slash
    an open tract of land in a forest that is strewn with debris from logging (or fire or wind)
    wonderland
    a place or scene of great or strange beauty or wonder
    Caribbean Island
    an island in the Caribbean Sea
    Aegean island
    an island in the Aegean Sea
    barrier island
    a long narrow sandy island (wider than a reef) running parallel to the shore
    continent
    one of the large landmasses of the earth
    flat
    a level tract of land
    flood plain, floodplain
    a low plain adjacent to a river that is formed chiefly of river sediment and is subject to flooding
    greenwood
    woodlands in full leaf
    llano
    an extensive grassy and nearly treeless plain (especially in Latin America)
    moor, moorland
    open land usually with peaty soil covered with heather and bracken and moss
    peneplain, peneplane
    a more or less level land surface representing an advanced stage of erosion undisturbed by crustal movements
    riparian forest
    woodlands along the banks of stream or river
    silva, sylva
    the forest trees growing in a country or region
    snowfield
    a permanent wide expanse of snow
    South Sea Islands
    any islands in the southern or southwestern of central parts of the Pacific Ocean
    spit, tongue
    a narrow strip of land that juts out into the sea
    steppe
    extensive plain without trees (associated with eastern Russia and Siberia)
    subcontinent
    a large and distinctive landmass (as India or Greenland) that is a distinct part of some continent
    tidewater
    low-lying coastal land drained by tidal streams
    tree farm
    a forest (or part of a forest) where trees are grown for commercial use
    tundra
    a vast treeless plain in the Arctic regions where the subsoil is permanently frozen
    type of:
    object, physical object
    a tangible and visible entity; an entity that can cast a shadow
  4. verb
    hide in the earth like a hunted animal
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    type of:
    hide, hide out
    be or go into hiding; keep out of sight, as for protection and safety
  5. verb
    connect to the earth
    “earth the circuit”
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    type of:
    ground
    connect to a ground
  6. noun
    the loose soft material that makes up a large part of the land surface
    “they dug into the earth outside the church”
    synonyms: ground
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    types:
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    moraine
    accumulated earth and stones deposited by a glacier
    diatomaceous earth, diatomite, kieselguhr
    a light soil consisting of siliceous diatom remains and often used as a filtering material
    saprolite
    a deposit of clay and disintegrating rock that is found in its original place
    dirt, soil
    the part of the earth's surface consisting of humus and disintegrated rock
    marl
    a loose and crumbling earthy deposit consisting mainly of calcite or dolomite; used as a fertilizer for soils deficient in lime
    regosol
    a type of soil consisting of unconsolidated material from freshly deposited alluvium or sand
    residual clay, residual soil
    the soil that is remaining after the soluble elements have been dissolved
    surface soil, topsoil
    the layer of soil on the surface
    subsoil, undersoil
    the layer of soil between the topsoil and bedrock
    alluvial soil
    a fine-grained fertile soil deposited by water flowing over flood plains or in river beds
    bog soil
    poorly drained soils on top of peat and under marsh or swamp vegetation
    clay
    a very fine-grained soil that is plastic when moist but hard when fired
    clunch
    hardened clay
    desert soil, desertic soil
    a type of soil that develops in arid climates
    caliche, hardpan
    crust or layer of hard subsoil encrusted with calcium-carbonate occurring in arid or semiarid regions
    fuller's earth
    an absorbent soil resembling clay; used in fulling (shrinking and thickening) woolen cloth and as an adsorbent
    gilgai soil
    soil in the melon holes of Australia
    gumbo, gumbo soil
    any of various fine-grained silty soils that become waxy and very sticky mud when saturated with water
    humus
    partially decomposed organic matter; the organic component of soil
    indurated clay
    hardened clay
    Indian red
    a red soil containing ferric oxide; often used as a pigment
    laterite
    a red soil produced by rock decay; contains insoluble deposits of ferric and aluminum oxides
    loam
    a rich soil consisting of a mixture of sand and clay and decaying organic materials
    loess
    a fine-grained unstratified accumulation of clay and silt deposited by the wind
    mold, mould
    loose soil rich in organic matter
    clay, mud
    water-soaked soil; soft, wet earth
    bole
    a soft oily clay used as a pigment (especially a reddish brown pigment)
    podsol, podsol soil, podsolic soil, podzol, podzol soil
    a soil that develops in temperate to cold moist climates under coniferous or heath vegetation; an organic mat over a grey leached layer
    prairie soil
    a type of soil occurring under grasses in temperate climates
    sand
    a loose material consisting of grains of rock or coral
    sedimentary clay
    clay soil formed by sedimentary deposits
    silt
    mud or clay or small rocks deposited by a river or lake
    boulder clay, till
    unstratified soil deposited by a glacier; consists of sand and clay and gravel and boulders mixed together
    tundra soil
    a black mucky soil with a frozen subsoil that is characteristic of Arctic and subarctic regions
    wiesenboden
    a dark meadow soil rich in organic material; developed through poor drainage in humid grassy or sedge regions
    type of:
    material, stuff
    the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object
  7. noun
    the concerns of this life as distinguished from heaven and the afterlife
    synonyms: earthly concern, world, worldly concern
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    type of:
    concern
    something that interests you because it is important or affects you
  8. noun
    once thought to be one of four elements composing the universe (Empedocles)
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    type of:
    element
    one of four substances thought in ancient and medieval cosmology to constitute the physical universe
  9. noun
    a connection between an electrical device and a large conducting body, such as the earth (which is taken to be at zero voltage)
    synonyms: ground
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    type of:
    connecter, connection, connective, connector, connexion
    an instrumentality that connects
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘earth'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
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