often attributive
1
: land in or predominantly in grass
2
: a tract of grassland: such as
a
: a large area of level or rolling land in the Mississippi River valley that in its natural uncultivated state usually has deep fertile soil, a cover of tall coarse grasses, and few trees
b
: one of the dry treeless plateaus east of the Rocky Mountains that merge on their east side with the prairies proper and are characterized by shorter grasses and drier less fertile soil
Synonyms
Examples of prairie in a Sentence
Millions of buffalo once roamed the prairies.
The train tracks extend over miles of prairie.
Recent Examples on the Web
Read: Eight books that will take you somewhere new
O Pioneers!, by Willa Cather
This novel, set in the closing decades of the 19th century and suffused with the wide-open lushness of the Nebraska prairie, practically demands to be read in the open air.
—
Chelsea Leu, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2024
While the continent was once home to 170 million acres of tall-grass prairie, now only four percent remains.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 19 Mar. 2024
Today, most of the old windmills have been torn down or left to rust out on the prairie.
—Michael Holtz, The New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2024
Also, like other prairie grouse, sage grouse have dark breast meat and light leg meat.
—Phil Bourjaily, Field & Stream, 11 Jan. 2024
Postcard From Earth immaculately highlights the picturesque beauty of canyons, prairies, mountain ranges, and gorges.
—Mark Gray, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2023
Our flames destroyed the young Eastern red cedars that threatened to turn prairie into woodland.
—M. R. O’Connor, The New Yorker, 29 Feb. 2024
Grass is the foundation of the prairie with eighty percent of the prairie land made up of different species of grass.
—Cindy Gordon, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2024
The number of hiking trails per 100,000 people: 178 — While the Boise foothills are home to about 190 miles of trails, the Gem State has plenty of beautiful hikes, from the panhandle to the southern prairies.
—Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 31 Jan. 2024
Chelsea Leu, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2024
While the continent was once home to 170 million acres of tall-grass prairie, now only four percent remains.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 19 Mar. 2024
Today, most of the old windmills have been torn down or left to rust out on the prairie.
—Michael Holtz, The New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2024
Also, like other prairie grouse, sage grouse have dark breast meat and light leg meat.
—Phil Bourjaily, Field & Stream, 11 Jan. 2024
Postcard From Earth immaculately highlights the picturesque beauty of canyons, prairies, mountain ranges, and gorges.
—Mark Gray, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2023
Our flames destroyed the young Eastern red cedars that threatened to turn prairie into woodland.
—M. R. O’Connor, The New Yorker, 29 Feb. 2024
Grass is the foundation of the prairie with eighty percent of the prairie land made up of different species of grass.
—Cindy Gordon, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2024
The number of hiking trails per 100,000 people: 178 — While the Boise foothills are home to about 190 miles of trails, the Gem State has plenty of beautiful hikes, from the panhandle to the southern prairies.
—Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 31 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'prairie.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near prairie
Cite this Entry
“Prairie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prairie. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
prairie
noun
prai·rie
ˈpre(ə)r-ē 
: a large area of level or rolling grassland
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