slash-and-burn

[ slash-uhn-burn ]

adjective

1. of a method of agriculture used in the tropics, in which forest vegetation is felled and burned, the land is cropped for a few years, then the forest is allowed to reinvade.

slash-and-burn

adjective

1. denoting a short-term method of cultivation in which land is cleared by destroying and burning trees and other vegetation for temporary agricultural use

Word History and Origins

Origin of slash-and-burn¹

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

A circus actor dressed as Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff spat fire to dramatize slash-and-burn agriculture.

From The Daily Beast