terrestrial Hear it!

terrestrial definition

ter·res·trial (tə res′trē əl)

adjective

  1. of this world; worldly; earthly; mundane
  2. of, constituting, or representing the earth a terrestrial globe
  3. consisting of land as distinguished from water
  4. living on land rather than in water, in the air, in trees, etc.
  5. growing on land or in the soil
  6. of the four small, rocky inner planets of the solar system, specif. Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars

Etymology: ME terrestrialle < L terrestris < terra, terra

noun

an inhabitant of the earth

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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