Land

Land, land, n. earth, the solid portion of the surface of the globe: a country: a district: soil: real estate: a nation or people: (Scot.) a group of dwellings or tenements under one roof and having a common entry.—v.t. to set on land or on shore.—v.i. to come on land or on shore.—ns. Land′-ā′gent, a person employed by the owner of an estate to let farms, collect rents, &c.; Land′-breeze, a breeze setting from the land towards the sea; Land′-crab, a family of crabs which live much or chiefly on land.—v.t. Land′damn (Shak.), to banish from the land.—adj. Land′ed, possessing land or estates: consisting in land or real estate.—ns. Land′er, one who lands; Land′fall, a landslip: an approach to land after a voyage, also the land so approached; Land′-fish (Shak.), a fish on land, any one acting contrary to his usual character; Land′-flood, a flooding or overflowing of land by water: inundation; Land′force, a military force serving on land, as distinguished from a naval force; Land′-grab′ber, one who acquires land by harsh and grasping means: one who is eager to occupy land from which others have been evicted; Land′-grab′bing, the act of the land-grabber; Land′-herd, a herd of animals which feed on land; Land′-hold′er, a holder or proprietor of land; Land′-hung′er, greed for the acquisition of land; Land′ing, act of going on land from a vessel: a place for getting on shore: the level part of a staircase between the flights of steps.—adj. relating to the unloading of a vessel's cargo.—ns. Land′ing-net, a kind of scoop-net for landing a fish that has been caught; Land′ing-place, a place for landing, as from a vessel; Land′ing-stage, a platform for landing passengers or goods carried by water, often rising and falling with the tide; Land′-job′ber, a speculator in land; Land′-job′bing; Land′lady, a woman who has property in land or houses: the mistress of an inn or lodging-house.—adj. Land′less (Shak.), without land or property.—v.t. Land′lock, to enclose by land.—-adj. Land′-locked, almost shut in by land, protected by surrounding masses of land from the force of wind and waves.—ns. Land′lord, the owner of land or houses: the master of an inn or lodging-house; Land′lordism, the authority or united action of the landholding class; Land′-lubb′er, a landsman (a term used by sailors); Land′mark, anything serving to mark the boundaries of land: any object on land that serves as a guide to seamen: any distinguishing characteristic; Land′-meas′ure, a system of square measure used in the measurement of land; Land′-meas′uring, the art of estimating the superficial content of portions of land; Land′-own′er, one who owns land; Land′-own′ership.—adj. Land′-own′ing.—ns. Land′-pī′lot, (Milt.), a guide on land; Land′-pī′rate, a highway robber: a fellow who makes a practice of swindling sailors in port; Land′rail, the crake or corncrake, so named from its cry; Land′-rak′er (Shak.), a vagabond; Land′-reeve, the assistant to the land-steward of a great estate; Land′-roll, a clod-crusher; Land′-scrip (U.S.), negotiable government certificate entitling to possession of certain public land by individuals or corporate bodies; Land′-shark, a land-grabber: one who plunders sailors on shore; Land′skip (same as Landscape); Land′slide, Land′slip, a portion of land that falls down, generally from the side of a hill, usually due to the undermining effect of water; Lands′man, Land′man, one who lives or serves on land: one inexperienced in seafaring; Land′-spring, water lying near the surface, easily drawn upon by shallow wells; Land′-stew′ard, a person who manages a landed estate; Land′-survey′ing (see Surveying); Land′-tax, a tax upon land; Land′-turn, a land-breeze; Land′-wait′er, a custom-house officer who attends on the landing of goods from ships.—adv. Land′ward, toward the land.—adj. lying toward the land, away from the sea-coast: situated in or forming part of the country, as opposed to the town: rural.—n. Land′wind, a wind blowing off the land.—Land League, an association founded in Ireland by Michael Davitt in 1879, and organised by C. S. Parnell, to procure reduction and rearrangement of rents, and to promote the substitution of peasant-proprietors for landlords—condemned as an illegal conspiracy in 1881; Landed interest, the combined interest of the land-holding class in a community.—Make the land, to discover the land as the ship approaches it; Set the land, to observe by the compass how the shore bears from the ship. [A.S. land; Dut., Ger. land.]