terra firma

/ˌˈtɛrə ˌfʌrmə/

Terra firma is a Latin phrase, literally meaning "firm land." Nervous flyers are generally overjoyed to put their feet back on terra firma after a rough airplane flight.

Terra firma is used in literary and formal English, rather than everyday conversation, so save this phrase for when you’re writing a poem or delivering a dramatic speech. In the 1600s, terra firma primarily referred just to the section of Italy that was ruled by Venice at the time, but eventually it came to designate all of earth’s dry land, separate from the air or the oceans.

Definitions of terra firma

1. noun

   the solid part of the earth's surface
   synonyms: dry land, earth, ground, land, solid ground

   examples:

   America

   North America and South America and Central America

   types:

   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