landslide
Americannoun
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landslides
plural
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the downward falling or sliding of a mass of soil, detritus, or rock on or from a steep slope.
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the mass itself.
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an election in which a particular victorious candidate or party receives an overwhelming mass or majority of votes.
the 1936 landslide for Roosevelt.
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any overwhelming victory.
She won the contest by a landslide.
verb (used without object)
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to come down in or as in a landslide.
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to win an election by an overwhelming majority.
noun
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Also called: landslip.
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the sliding of a large mass of rock material, soil, etc, down the side of a mountain or cliff
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the material dislodged in this way
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an overwhelming electoral victory
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( as modifier )
a landslide win
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The rapid downward sliding of a mass of earth and rock. Landslides usually move over a confined area. Many kinds of events can trigger a landslide, such as the oversteepening of slopes by erosion associated with rivers, glaciers, or ocean waves; heavy snowmelt which saturates soil and rock; or earthquakes that lead to the failure of weak slopes.
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The mass of soil and rock that moves in this way.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of landslide
Explanation
When dirt and rock from a mountainside are sliding down, call it a landslide. Another kind of landslide takes place when one candidate soundly defeats another in an election. With either type of landslide, it's probably safest to stay out of the way! The political meaning of landslide is commonly used, but it's not the word's original definition. A geographical landslide occurs when a huge amount of earth slides down a slope or mountain, usually displacing rocks and vegetation and often houses and buildings as well. Landslides are caused by erosion, heavy rain, and earthquakes, among other events, and they're disruptive enough to give rise to the figurative meaning.
Vocabulary lists containing landslide
Physical Geography - Introductory
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Physical Geography - Middle School
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Physical Geography - High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A tsunami begins when a large volume of water is suddenly displaced, often by an earthquake, landslide, or volcanic eruption.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
The resulting landslide and tsunami caused eight deaths, according to a reconstruction published in Natural Hazards.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
It was a shock to many in the markets that despite a landslide majority, Labour could not push through plans to cut Britain's welfare bill.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
Chinese rescuers near the Tibet border port that was hit by a deadly mudslide were "moved to a safe location" on Sunday after a new lake was formed by a landslide, state media reported.
From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026
Burr had alienated Jefferson and the triumphant Republican party by his disloyalty as a vice president and had lost by a landslide in his bid to become a Federalist governor of New York.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
The researchers point to possible applications in avalanches, landslides, materials science, and particle-filled inks used in 3D printing.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
After thousands of passes over the Moon, researchers have assembled maps precise enough to identify new craters, landslides, spacecraft landers, seismic faults, and possible signs of lava tubes.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
Not all disasters are foreseeable but those that relate to geology, like landslides and glacier collapses, can often be detected early in the data, if there is capacity to spot the pattern.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
"It's quite dangerous, and we've got a lot of landslides, trees across the roads in front of us," he said.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
Windstorms, lightning fires, landslides, volcanic eruptions, and other natural calamities knock down trees and open up the forest, or prevent open country from turning into forestland.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
“Even a moderate earthquake could cause a local-source tsunami from submarine landsliding in Monterey Bay,” public documents say.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2025
“The weaker alluvial sediments can amplify shaking, and mountains are vulnerable to landsliding, including along the roads that lead to mountain villages.”
From National Geographic ● Sep. 11, 2023
"When the glaciers melted the sediment was no longer supported by the ice margins, so in places it can be susceptible to landsliding."
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2020
Says Norge President Judson S. Sayre: "The way orders are landsliding, we could be sold out for the year by October 15."
From Time Magazine Archive
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
