prairie Meaning, Definition & Usage

Prai"rie noun

Etymology

F., an extensive meadow, OF. praerie, LL. prataria, fr. L. pratum a meadow.

Definitions

1. An extensive tract of level or rolling land, destitute of trees, covered with coarse grass, and usually characterized by a deep, fertile soil. They abound throughout the Mississippi valley, between the Alleghanies and the Rocky mountains.

   From the forests and the prairies, From the great lakes of the northland. Longfellow.

2. A meadow or tract of grass; especially, a so called natural meadow.