prairie

American  

[prair-ee] / ˈprɛər i /

noun

1. an extensive, level or slightly undulating, mostly treeless tract of land in the Mississippi valley, characterized by a highly fertile soil and originally covered with coarse grasses, and merging into drier plateaus in the west.

2. a tract of grassland; meadow.

3. (in Florida) a low, sandy tract of grassland often covered with water.

4. Southern U.S. wet grassland; marsh.

5. (initial capital letter) a steam locomotive having a two-wheeled front truck, six driving wheels, and a two-wheeled rear truck.

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prairie British  

/ ˈprɛərɪ /

noun

1. (often plural) a treeless grassy plain of the central US and S Canada Compare pampas steppe savanna

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prairie Scientific  

/ prâr′ē /

1. An extensive area of flat or rolling grassland, especially the large plain of central North America.

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Other Word Forms

• prairielike adjective

Etymology

Origin of prairie

1675–85; < French: meadow < Vulgar Latin *prātāria, equivalent to Latin prāt ( um ) meadow + -āria, feminine of -ārius -ary

Example Sentences

One of Canada's main objectives during this trip is to ease Chinese tariffs on Canadian canola that have hurt farmers in the country's prairie provinces.

From BBC

We climbed aboard the clattering omnibus just as it pulled up, and it carried us all the way to the southern edge of the city, where the prairie grasses grew tall and abundant.

From Literature

Curling was born in Scotland in the early 16th century but grew up centuries later on the Canadian prairies, where the severe weather, rural landscape and boredom provided fertile ground.

From Los Angeles Times

The roof needed to be replaced to withstand heavy snow, hard rain and the golf-ball-sized hail of prairie thunderstorms.

From Salon

I’m usually a loyalist to the cornmeal-swirled muffin — I love that little grainy grit, the way it reins in lush summer fruit with a bit of prairie stoicism.

From Salon

Related Words

• meadow
• pasture
• plain
• savanna
• steppe