Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Language: Old English
Origin: eorthe

earth

1 noun
     
earth
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earth1 S2 W2
1

world

also Earth [singular, uncountable] the planet that we live on:
the planet Earth
the earth
The earth revolves around the sun.
the earth's surface/atmosphere/crust etc
71% of the earth's surface is sea.
on earth
the origin of life on Earth
2

soil

[uncountable]TAS the substance that plants grow in [= soil]
soft/bare/damp etc earth
footprints in the wet earth
a lump of earth
3

land

[uncountable] the hard surface of the world, as opposed to the sea or air [= ground]:
The earth shook.
They watched the kite fall back to earth.
 ➔ see usage note ground1
4

what/why/how etc on earth ...?

spoken used to ask a question when you are very surprised or angry:
What on earth did you do that for?
5

cost/pay/charge the earth

informal to cost etc a very large amount of money:
It must have cost the earth!
6

the biggest/tallest/most expensive etc ... on earth

the biggest etc example of something that exists:
the most powerful man on earth
7

religion

[uncountable] used in religion to refer to the time when people are alive as opposed to being in heaven or hell:
Jesus' time on earth

➔ move heaven and earth

at heaven (9)

➔ hell on earth

at hell1 (2)
8

come back/down to earth (with a bump)

to stop behaving or living in a way that is not practical:
She soon brought him back down to earth.
9

no ... /nothing on earth

used to emphasize that you mean nothing at all:
Nothing on earth would have persuaded me to go.
There's no reason on earth why you should tell him.
10

look/feel etc like nothing on earth

British English to look or feel very strange:
The next morning I felt like nothing on earth.
11

electricity

[countable usually singular] British EnglishTEE a wire that makes a piece of electrical equipment safe by connecting it with the ground [= ground American English]
12

animal's home

[countable] the hole where a wild animal such as a fox lives [↪ den, lair]
13

go to earth

British English to hide in order to escape from someone who is chasing you [= go to ground]
14

run somebody/something to earth

British English to find someone, especially by looking in many places
➔ down-to-earth

➔ promise somebody the moon/the earth

at promise1 (3)

➔ the salt of the earth

at salt1 (2)WORD CHOICE: WORD CHOICE:

ground, land, earth, soil, floorThe ground is the surface that you walk on when you are outdoors • There were a few flakes of snow on the ground. • an area of muddy groundland is an area of ground that is owned or controlled by someone • They were on his land. • land set aside for housingIt is also the part of the earth's surface that is not covered in water • animals that live on landearth or soil is the soft substance that covers the ground and that plants grow in • Green shoots peeped through the earth. • fertile soilThe Earth or earth is also the planet that we live on.The floor is the surface that you walk on when you are indoors • There's mud all over the floor! ➔ See also ground
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
 
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