landless

American  

[land-lis] / ˈlænd lɪs /

adjective

1. without landed property; not owning land.

   a landless noble.

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Other Word Forms

• landlessness noun

Etymology

Origin of landless

before 1000; Middle English; Old English landlēas. See land, -less

Example Sentences

Under Árbenz, Guatemala implemented a land reform program in 1952 that gave landless farmworkers their own undeveloped plots.

From Salon • Jan. 18, 2026

Many Nama are landless and live in informal settlements with inadequate access to water and electricity, or in remote areas, far from schools and hospitals.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 1, 2025

The Havasupai Tribe was landless for a time until the federal government set aside a plot in the depths of the Grand Canyon for members.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 20, 2023

The Gabrieleño tribes, however, are among roughly two dozen unrecognized and landless tribes in California that have initiated petitions for federal recognition by the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 8, 2023

Lord Petyr's fa-ther had been the smallest of small lords, his grandfather a landless hedge knight; by birth, he held no more than a few stony acres on the windswept shore of the Fingers.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin