veldt

American  

[velt] / vɛlt /

noun

plural

veldts

1. a variant of veld.

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veldt Scientific  

/ vĕlt,fĕlt /

1. An extensive, treeless grassland of southern Africa.

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Explanation

A veldt is a wide, grassy plain found in southernmost Africa. Some areas of veldt are used as farmland, while other parts are home to wildlife preserves. You can visit a veldt, or veld, by traveling to South Africa or Zimbabwe. While you won't see many trees in a veldt, there are plenty of low-lying plants, bushes, and grass. The word is Afrikaans in origin, from the Dutch veld, or "field," and it's commonly used this way in South Africa — there are Highveld and Lowveld areas, as well as rugby fields called "rugbyveldt" and sandy fields known as "sandyveldt."

Example Sentences

“Alex is in a cell,” the oldest man said, his voice as flat as the veldt stretching to the horizon.

From The Guardian • Mar. 30, 2019

In his public appearances, Berger often shows a photograph of the golden high veldt and tells audiences, “When I look at that, I see Swiss cheese.”

From The New Yorker • Jun. 20, 2016

Also, square cars getting rounder, with Land Rover smoothing out its distinct boxy corners, ideal for the African veldt, to look like everything else.

From Washington Post • Jan. 30, 2015

So your partner occasionally sounds like a lion on the veldt.

From Slate • Dec. 18, 2012

The hills are in pleasant contrast to the even tenour of the veldt, and the cool waters of the river invite repose.

From The Siege of Mafeking (1900) by Hamilton, J. Angus

Related Words

• pasture
• plain
• prairie
• savanna
• steppe