oasis
noun
a small fertile or green area in a desert region, usually having a spring or well.
oasis
American
[oh-ey-sis]
/ oʊˈeɪ sɪs /
noun
-
oases
plural
Oasis
1
British
/ əʊˈeɪsɪs /
noun
oasis
2
British
/ əʊˈeɪsɪs /
noun
-
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
oasis
Scientific
/ ō-ā′sĭs /
-
oases
plural
Usage
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.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of oasis
First recorded in 1605–15; from Late Latin, from Greek óasis, from Egyptian wḥʾt “oasis region”
Explanation
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.
Vocabulary lists containing oasis
Figurative Language in King's "I Have a Dream" Speech (1963)
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Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" Speech (1963)
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Physical Geography - Introductory
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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:
Near an oasis in the Gobi Desert, the stupendous mural-covered grottoes capture centuries of Buddhist art.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Now the dream has turned into a nightmare for many in the cosmopolitan oasis who have given their lives and fortunes to foster "human unity in diversity" and "the transformation of consciousness".
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
Crews are now assessing the damage to this ecological and cultural oasis.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2026
They have built their futures around creating an oasis of stability and multi-billion-dollar business in the Gulf.
From BBC ● Jun. 9, 2026
If he wanted to, he could now return to the oasis, go back to Fatima, and live his life as a simple shepherd.
From "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho
Manchester has become a kind of cultural capital of cool in recent decades, home to global musical acts like Oasis and the Stone Roses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
During the World Cup, fans of England’s team have been belting the Oasis evergreen “Wonderwall” after victories.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
Heavily bombed during World War Two because of its huge manufacturing capacity, Manchester became a creative hub from the 1980s onwards with bands like New Order and Oasis achieving global fame.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
Activists that specialize in the Asia-Pacific region such as Dalton Investments, Oasis Management, and Strategic Capital were among the busiest players, Lazard’s data showed.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
Oasis Circle—what if I needed to get there?
From "Paradise on Fire" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
But the war is hitting their core business proposition—being oases of stability within a volatile region—and delivering a blow to efforts to diversify their economies beyond energy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
While there are some fully off-grid dwellers, ranging from high-end desert oases and North Coast communes to the famous counterculture settlement of Imperial County’s “Slab City,” an off-grid suburb is one of a kind.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 24, 2025
Such bubbles of longing buoy most love stories, although they're employed as sparing oases between expositional expanses.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2024
That was also the case in North Africa, where the grasslands, forests, and lakes favored by humans disappeared, causing them to retreat to areas like the mountains, oases, and the Nile Delta.
From Science Daily ● May 7, 2024
The larger the area sprayed the more serious the harm, because no oases of safety remain.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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.
