land grant

American  

noun

1. a tract of land given by the government, as for colleges or railroads.

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land grant British  

noun

1. a grant of public land to a college, railway, etc

2. (modifier) designating a state university established with such a grant

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Etymology

Origin of land grant

First recorded in 1850–55

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

land grant

Bennet Evans Tarlow III was the great-great-grandson of the man who carved out and developed much of this area from an 18th-century Spanish land grant.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 14, 2025

Marquez’s Mexican ancestors had owned the 6,656-acre land grant rancho that included part of what is now Santa Monica.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 12, 2024

Clover features more than 220 online educational activities for students, ages 5 to 18, developed by 4-H’s partners in the Cooperative Extension System and its network of land grant universities.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 13, 2023

The construction program at the land grant university contributed to a $45-million deficit for the coming year, with expectations that it would rise to $75 million by 2028.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2023

“It is the land grant to all of the territory from the silver mountains to the blue hills, from the dead salt sea there to the distant valleys of moonstone and emerald,” said the Leader.

From "The Martian Chronicles" by Ray Bradbury