vegetation

[vej-i-tey-shuhn]

noun

1. all the plants or plant life of a place, taken as a whole.

   the vegetation of the Nile valley.

2. the act or process of vegetating.

3. a dull existence; life devoid of mental or social activity.

   Synonyms: lethargy, sloth, idleness, inactivity

4. Pathology.,  a morbid growth, or excrescence.

vegetation

/ ˌvɛdʒɪˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. plant life as a whole, esp the plant life of a particular region

2. the process of vegetating

3. pathol any abnormal growth, excrescence, etc

4. a vegetative existence

vegetation

1. The plants of an area or a region; plant life.

2. An abnormal bodily accretion, especially a clot composed largely of fused blood platelets, fibrin, and sometimes bacteria, that adheres to a diseased heart valve.

Other Word Forms

• vegetational adjective
• vegetationless adjective
• nonvegetation noun
• prevegetation noun
• undervegetation noun
• vegetatious adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of vegetation¹

1555–65; < Medieval Latin vegetātiōn- (stem of vegetātiō ), equivalent to vegetāt- ( vegetate ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

That would be a far cry from last year, when Southern California grappled with a record dry streak over the fall and winter that left vegetation withered and primed to burn.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The plans show 70% of the trees would be retained along the path with reports saying 25% of the vegetation "needing scaling back due to it being dead, diseased or invasive species".

Read more on BBC

They found her van about 20 metres from the house, wedged into vegetation, having evidently slid off the driveway.

Read more on BBC

It will take a couple of weeks following the storm to assess how vegetation responds, he said, but the expected precipitation “definitely should start to make a big difference in the fire season.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

"To the contrary, the vegetation appears to continue to deteriorate in large parts of the project area," it said.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• flora 
• greenery