terrain

«terrain» in Mova's school dictionary: A stretch of land, especially as to what it is like:… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

part of speech

noun (terrain — usually uncountable; terrains)

meaning for a pupil

1) A stretch of land, especially as to what it is like: hilly, rocky, flat, muddy or rough. tree →

2) (figurative) An area of knowledge or activity: "Algebra was new terrain for her." tree →

sense in the lessons

In geography lessons terrain is described by its features: mountains, valleys, plains, deserts. In stories and adventure books rough terrain makes journeys hard. Vehicles and bikes are called "all-terrain" if they can travel over any kind of ground. In video games, terrain is the ground the player moves on. Phrases: rough terrain, rocky terrain, all-terrain vehicle, difficult terrain.

examples

• The hikers crossed rocky terrain. tree →
• Mountain bikes are made for rough terrain. tree →
• The terrain in the Outback is dry and flat. tree →
• An all-terrain vehicle can drive over sand and mud. tree →
• The soldiers knew the terrain well. tree →
• The map shows the terrain with contour lines. tree →
• Coding was new terrain for our class. tree →

note

Usually uncountable (rough terrain, not a rough terrain), though "terrains" is possible. Stress on the second syllable: ter-RAIN. Do not confuse with "terrier" (a dog) or "territory" (an area owned or controlled by someone).

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «terrain» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.