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

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

The desired image, projected against a backdrop of veldt and dust, is always one of determined respectability.

From The Guardian • Mar. 22, 2013

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

From Slate • Dec. 18, 2012

From the cool high veldt to the fertile green Valley of Reeds is a wonderful change, and it takes a full hour to climb down the winding trail.

From Adventures in Swaziland The Story of a South African Boer by O'Neil, Owen Rowe

Related Words

• pasture
• plain
• prairie
• savanna
• steppe