n.
- The land surface of the world.
- The softer, friable part of land; soil, especially productive soil.
- often Earth The third planet from the sun, having a sidereal period of revolution about the sun of 365.26 days at a mean distance of approximately 149 million kilometers (92.96 million miles), an axial rotation period of 23 hours 56.07 minutes, an average radius of 6,378 kilometers (3,963 miles), and a mass of approximately 5.974 × 1024 kilograms (1.317 × 1025 pounds).
- The realm of mortal existence; the temporal world.
- The human inhabitants of the world: The earth received the news with joy.
- Worldly affairs and pursuits.
- Everyday life; reality: was brought back to earth from his daydreams of wealth and fame.
- The substance of the human body; clay.
- The lair of a burrowing animal.
- Chiefly British. The ground of an electrical circuit.
- Chemistry. Any of several metallic oxides, such as alumina or zirconia, that are difficult to reduce and were formerly regarded as elements.
v., earthed, earth·ing, earths. v.tr.
- To cover or heap (plants) with soil for protection.
- To chase (an animal) into an underground hiding place.
To burrow or hide in the ground. Used of a hunted animal.
idiom:
on earth
- Among all the possibilities: Why on earth did you put on that outfit?
[Middle English erthe, from Old English eorthe.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
