terrestrial
English · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
terrestrial¹
- /tɪˈɹɛstɹɪ.əl/ UK
- /tɪˈɹɛstɹɪ.əl/ US
- /təˈɹɛstɹɪ.əl/ US
- /tɪˈɹɛstɹɪ.əl/ Canada
- /tɪˈɹestɹɪ.əl/ Australia
- /təˈɹestɹɪ.əl/ Australia
Where it comes from
From Middle English terrestrialle, from terrestre or Latin terrestris, from terra (“land, earth, ground”), with the suffix -al.
noun terrestrials
- A ground-dwelling plant.
- Alternative letter-case form of Terrestrial (“Inhabitant of Earth”). It will be manifest that natural scenery must present many beautiful varieties of effect altogether unfamiliar to us terrestrials, who know of no colours in scenery except those inherent in the objects themselves which form the landscape.
adjective
-
Of or relating to the Earth or its (native) inhabitants.
Plastics are energy-rich substances, which is why many of them burn so readily. Any organism that could unlock and use that energy would do well in the Anthropocene. Terrestrial bacteria and fungi which can manage this trick are already familiar to experts in the field.
Similar: earthly
- Of, relating to, or composed of land or earth, as contrasted with bodies of water, with wetlands viewed as semiaquatic environs, or with aerial or space environs. Near-synonyms: land (attributive), landbased, landly
- Living or growing in or on land (as opposed to other habitats or substrates). a terrestrial plant
-
Being composed primarily of silicate rocks or metals, as contrasted with gases, liquified gases, and dust.
Near-synonyms: tellurian, telluric, terrene, Terran, rocky, metallic
Similar: tellurian, telluric, terrene, Terran, rocky, metallic
-
Concerned with the world or worldly matters.
Near-synonyms: worldly, sublunary
Similar: worldly, sublunary · Opposite: celestial, spiritual, ethereal
- Of or pertaining to the second highest degree of glory. We are now living and obeying celestial laws that will make us candidates for celestial glory; or we are living terrestrial laws that will make us candidates for terrestrial glory; or telestial.
- Broadcast using radio waves as opposed to satellite or cable.
Terrestrial²
- /tɪˈɹɛstɹɪ.əl/ UK
- /tɪˈɹɛstɹɪ.əl/ US
- /təˈɹɛstɹɪ.əl/ US
- /tɪˈɹɛstɹɪ.əl/ Canada
- /tɪˈɹestɹɪ.əl/ Australia
- /təˈɹestɹɪ.əl/ Australia
Where it comes from
From Latin terrestris, from terra (“land, earth, ground”).
noun Terrestrials
- An inhabitant of the planet Earth. It will be manifest that natural scenery must present many beautiful varieties of effect altogether unfamiliar to us terrestrials, who know of no colours in scenery except those inherent in the objects themselves which form the landscape.
Opposite: alien, extraterrestrial
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: land, sublunar, terrene, earthly, telluric, sublunary, tellurian, planetary, worldly, mundane, field, upland, lis, ground, shore, onshore
noun
Opposite: alien, extraterrestrial
Translations
Every language
adj of, relating to, or inhabiting the Earth or its inhabitants
| Español | terrestre |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 地上の chijō no |
| 中文 | 地球的 dìqiú de |
| हिन्दी | पार्थिव pārthiv |
| Português | terrestre, térreo |
| Français | terrestre |
| Deutsch | irdisch, terrestrisch, Erd- |
| Italiano | terrestre |
| Ελληνικά | γήινος gíinos |
| Română | terestru, pământesc |
| Русский | земно́й zemnój |
| العربية | أَرْضِيّ ʔarḍiyy |
adj living or growing on land; not aquatic
| Español | terrestre |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 陸生の rikusei |
| 中文 | 陸生 /陆生 lùshēng |
| हिन्दी | थलीय thalīya, थलचर thalcar |
| Português | terrestre |
| Français | terrestre |
| Deutsch | Land- |
| Italiano | terragnolo, terricolo, terragno |
| Ελληνικά | εδαφόβιος edafóvios |
| Română | terestru, neacvatic |
| Русский | назе́мный nazémnyj, сухопу́тный suxopútnyj |
adj astronomy: being composed primarily of silicate rocks or metals
| Deutsch | terrestrisch, erdähnlich |
|---|
Talk about this word "terrestrial." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/terrestrial. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. terrestrial. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/terrestrial "terrestrial." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/terrestrial.Cite this
@misc{terrestrial_2026,
title = {terrestrial},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/terrestrial},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
