terrestrial

See also: Terrestrial

Contents

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin terrestris, from terra (“land, earth, ground”), with the suffix -al.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /təˈɹɛstɹi.əl/

Noun

terrestrial (plural terrestrials)

1. (botany) A ground-dwelling plant.
2. Alternative letter-case form of Terrestrial

Adjective

terrestrial (not comparable)

1. Of, relating to, or inhabiting the land of the Earth or its inhabitants, earthly.
   • 2013 July 20, “Welcome to the plastisphere”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:

     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.

2. Of, relating to, or composed of land.
   • 1997, New Scientist, issue 2096, Review: Cinderella's house

     Microorganisms are the Cinderellas of terrestrial ecology — the majority of the Earth's biomass, yet barely catalogued.

3. Living or growing in or on land (as opposed to other habitat); not aquatic, etc.

   a terrestrial plant

4. (astronomy) Of a planet, being composed primarily of silicate rocks or metals; see also terrestrial planet.
5. Concerned with the world or worldly matters.
   • Young

     A genius bright and base, / Of towering talents, and terrestrial aims.

6. (Mormonism) Of or pertaining to the second highest degree of glory.
   • 1974 February, “A Sure Trumpet Sound: Quotations from President Lee”, in Ensign‎^[1], page 77:

     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.

   • 1977 August, Bruce R. McConkie, “A New Commandment: Save Thyself and Thy Kindred!”, in Tambuli‎^[2], page 5:

     Theirs is an everlasting terrestrial inheritance because they rejected the truth when it was offered to them in mortality.

7. (broadcasting) Broadcast using radio waves as opposed to satellite or cable.

Synonyms

• earthly
• planetary
• tellurian, telluric, Terran, terrene
• (of, relating to, or composed of land): land, landly
• (astronomy: Earth-like): telluric, rocky
• (concerned with the world): earthly, mundane, sublunary, worldly

Antonyms

• (of, made of, related to, or living or growing on land): aerial, aquatic, arboreal, epiphytic
• (concerned with the world): celestial, spiritual

Derived terms

Terms derived from terrestrial (adjective)

• extraterrestrial
• subterrestrial
• superterrestrial

• supraterrestrial
• terrestrial albedo
• terrestrially

• terrestrial navigation
• terrestrial planet
• terrestrial telescope

Related terms

▼ English terms derived from the PIE root *ters-‎ (0 c, 26 e)

  disinter

  extraterrestrial

  inter

  Mediterranean

  Newfoundland

  reinter

  subterranean

  subterrestrial

  superterrestrial

  terra

  Terra

  terra firma

  terrace

  terracotta

  terrain

  Terran

  terrane

  terranean

  terrene

  terrestrial

  terrier

  territorial

  territory

  terroir

  thirst

  toast

Translations

of, relating to, or inhabiting the Earth or its inhabitants

• Belarusian: зямны́ (zjamný)
• Catalan: terrestre (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 地球的 (zh) (dìqiú de)

• Esperanto: tera
• Finnish: maa- (fi), maaperän (fi), Maan (fi)
• French: terrestre (fr)
• German: irdisch (de), terrestrisch (de)
• Greek: γήινος (el) (gíinos)

  Ancient: ἐπίγειος (epígeios)

• Irish: domhanda

• Italian: terrestre (it)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: terrestrisk

  Nynorsk: terrestrisk

• Polish: ziemski (pl)
• Portuguese: terrestre (pt), térreo (pt)
• Romanian: terestru (ro), pământesc (ro)
• Russian: земно́й (ru) (zemnój)
• Spanish: terrestre (es)
• Tagalog: dutain
• Ukrainian: земни́й (zemnýj)

of, pertaining to, or made of land

• Finnish: maa- (fi)
• Ido: terala (io)

• Russian: земно́й (ru) (zemnój)
• Tagalog: dalatning

living or growing on land; not aquatic

• Catalan: terrestre (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 陸生 (zh), 陆生 (zh) (lùshēng)

• Czech: suchozemský (cs)
• Finnish: maa- (fi)
• French: terrestre (fr) m or f
• German: Land- (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: ἐπίγειος (epígeios)

• Hindi: terrerist (terrerist)
• Hungarian: szárazföldi (hu)

• Italian: terragnolo, terricolo, terragno
• Japanese: 陸生の (ja) (りくせい, rikusei)
• Maori: nohowhenua
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: terrestrisk

  Nynorsk: terrestrisk

• Polish: nadziemny (pl)
• Romanian: terestru (ro), neacvatic
• Russian: назе́мный (ru) (nazémnyj), сухопу́тный (ru) (suxopútnyj)
• Spanish: terrestre (es)

astronomy: being composed primarily of silicate rocks or metals

• Finnish: maankaltainen

• German: terrestrisch (de), erdähnlich (de)

concerned with the worldly matters

• Finnish: maallinen (fi)

Mormonism: of or pertaining to the second highest degree of glory

• Finnish: maanpäällinen (fi)

broadcast with radio waves

• Finnish: maa- (fi)

• Polish: naziemny (pl)

References

• terrestrial at OneLook Dictionary Search