a fertile patch in a desert occurring where the water table approaches or reaches the ground surface
a place of peace, safety, or happiness in the midst of trouble or difficulty
Plural word for oasis The plural form of oasis is oases, pronounced [ oh-ey-seez ]. The plurals of several other singular words that end in -is are also formed in this way, including hypothesis/hypotheses, crisis/crises, and axis/axes. A similar change is made when pluralizing appendix as appendices. Irregular plurals that are formed like oases derive directly from their original pluralization in Latin and Greek.
First recorded in 1605–15; from Late Latin, from Greek óasis, from Egyptian wḥʾt “oasis region”
As you walk through the desert of life, may you always find your oasis — a place where you can find safety and sustenance. Although the literal meaning of oasis is "a green spot in the desert," it can also be used to describe a peaceful area in our everyday lives. Perhaps your home is your oasis, where you can escape life's rigors. An oasis refers to a location, but it can also be an imagined place — as in an acting exercise where an actor builds an imaginary oasis in his or her mind. The actor can then remember the image to relax on stage.
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It’s an oasis for arts, tasteful wealth, and Southern manners in one of the reddest parts of the country.
From Slate • May 4, 2026
At the heart of it is the Koothandavar Temple where ostracised transgender community members from across India come to honour the Hindu deity Aravan -- and to enjoy a brief oasis of freedom.
From Barron's • May 3, 2026
The crescent Earth — our oasis holding everything we cherish, now just a speck in the infinite blackness — seemed to kiss the jagged lunar surface.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
For decades, the Arab states of the Persian Gulf sold themselves as an oasis of peace in a region prone to conflict, attracting wealthy expats, multinational corporations and investment.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 28, 2026
Once obstacles were overcome, it returned to its course, sighting on a star that indicated the location of the oasis.
From "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho
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.
