savanna

American  

[suh-van-uh] / səˈvæn ə /

Or savannah

noun

• savannas
  plural

1. a plain characterized by coarse grasses and scattered tree growth, especially on the margins of the tropics where the rainfall is seasonal, as in eastern Africa.

2. grassland region with scattered trees, grading into either open plain or woodland, usually in subtropical or tropical regions.

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savanna British  

/ səˈvænə /

noun

1. open grasslands, usually with scattered bushes or trees, characteristic of much of tropical Africa

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savanna Scientific  

/ sə-văn′ə /

1. A flat, grass-covered area of tropical or subtropical regions, nearly treeless in some places but generally having a mix of widely spaced trees and bushes. Savannas have distinct wet and dry seasons, with the mix of vegetation dependent primarily on the relative length of the two seasons.

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savanna Cultural  

1. A tropical land mass of grassland and scattered trees.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• savannas
  plural

Etymology

Origin of savanna

First recorded in 1545–55; earlier zavana, from Spanish (now sabana ), from Taíno zabana

Explanation

A savanna is a grassy, usually tropical area of land. You're more likely to find a savanna in Tanzania than in Savannah, Georgia. You can spell this word savanna or savannah — either way, you're talking about a particular kind of ecosystem that's mostly covered with grass and sparsely placed trees. While most savannas are in tropical or subtropical parts of the world, there are also temperate savannas (including in the Great Plains of the U.S.) and mediterranean savannas, such as California's oak tree savannas. In Spanish, savanna means "treeless plain."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

savanna savannas

The amount detected in Neanderthal samples was similar to levels found in western chimpanzees, which use insects to supplement their diets on the savanna, particularly during droughts.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 27, 2026

Kio, whom director Favreau and company begin following when he’s eight weeks old, is a tenacious fellow and there’s never any question that life on the savanna is harsh, severe and can be very brief.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

The centerpiece of the 13-acre-plus parkland is a curved bridge overlooking a savanna, allowing elephants to walk under guests.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 4, 2026

The research used forest inventory data from 2,700 plots across the country, ranging from cool moist forests to dry savanna.

From Barron's ● Jan. 6, 2026

That night she listened to the voices of the troop as they nested in the trees across the savanna.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

Capybaras aren’t native to Mexico; they are South American, occupying savannas and vegetated areas.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026

In both public perception and official policy, savannas in India and elsewhere have often been labeled "wastelands."

From Science Daily ● Feb. 1, 2026

The scale of the increase varied across the four different biomes surveyed, with the sharpest rise in tropical savannas.

From Barron's ● Jan. 6, 2026

"We must act to save our rivers, oceans, savannas, mangroves and forests, as well as the communities that protect and live alongside them," he said.

From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2024

The trail had petered out in the forests and savannas of central Africa.

From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston

Related Words

• grassland