landmark

American  

[land-mahrk] / ˈlændˌmɑrk /

noun

landmarks plural

1. a prominent or conspicuous object on land that serves as a guide, especially to ships at sea or to travelers on a road; a distinguishing landscape feature marking a site or location.

   The post office served as a landmark for locating the street to turn down.

2. something used to mark the boundary of land.

3. a building or other place that is of outstanding historical, aesthetic, or cultural importance, often declared as such and given a special status landmark designation, ordaining its preservation, by some authorizing organization.

4. a significant or historic event, juncture, achievement, etc..

   The court decision stands as a landmark in constitutional law.

   Synonyms:

   benchmark, watershed, milestone

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verb (used with object)

1. to declare (a building, site, etc.) a landmark.

   a movement to landmark New York's older theaters.

landmark British  

/ ˈlændˌmɑːk /

noun

1. a prominent or well-known object in or feature of a particular landscape

2. an important or unique decision, event, fact, discovery, etc

3. a boundary marker or signpost

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unlandmarked
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• landmarks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of landmark

before 1000; Middle English; Old English landmearc. See land, mark ¹

Explanation

A landmark is anything that helps you know where you are — in space, in time, in history. If you’re sailing from Europe to New York, the Statue of Liberty will be the landmark that lets you know you’re in the right port. If you’re walking to your cousin’s house, the pizza shop on the corner is the landmark that lets you know you just have two blocks to go. Getting your driver’s license is a landmark event, as was the Revolutionary War — though which battle was harder is yours to determine.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

landmark landmarks

The Liuzzo family was harassed for their mother’s activism even after her death, but the event galvanized activists all over the country, becoming one impetus for Congress to finally pass the landmark 1965 legislation.

From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026

One landmark decision allowed Exxon to pursue claims that it owned refineries and gas stations seized by Cuba’s government, rejecting a sovereign-immunity defense by Cuba’s state-run conglomerate CIMEX.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

The United States on Wednesday announced a landmark deal with Saudi Arabia that would establish a civilian nuclear program in the Gulf country, with Washington insisting the agreement includes nonproliferation safeguards.

From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026

Following a six-year shutdown prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Sony Pictures Entertainment has stepped in to restore and reopen the historic Hollywood landmark.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026

In 1941, three years before Avery’s landmark experiment, two scientists, George Beadle and Edward Tatum, working in a basement tunnel at Stanford University, discovered the missing link between genes and physical traits.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

In France this weekend, the Eiffel Tower and other Paris landmarks announced early closures as a quarter of the country was sweltering under the third heat wave to hit the country since May.

From Barron's ● Jul. 11, 2026

The centers’ likely usage for AI concerns her as an artist, while the companies’ erasure of cultural landmarks in the construction process upsets her as a longtime resident.

From Salon ● Jul. 9, 2026

“These landmarks and monuments belonged to all of us, and they must be protected for generations to come,” Pirro said Thursday.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

The Hardah Dam volcanic crater is one of the country's most famous natural landmarks.

From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026

“Most treasure maps have landmarks and dashes and an ‘X’ to mark the spot where the treasure’s buried.

From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein

Related Words

• marker
• memorial
• milestone
• monument
• museum
• tree