badlands

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. An arid terrain characterized by severe erosion of sedimentary rocks.
name
  1. Badlands National Park, a national park in South Dakota.

Pronunciation

/ˈbæd.lændz/

Word forms

badlands badland Bad Lands

Etymology

From earlier Bad Lands, calque of Canadian French mauvaises terres à traverser (“bad lands to cross”), itself a calque of Lakota Makȟóšiča (from makȟá (“land”) + o- (attributive prefix) + šíča (“bad”)).

Synonyms

Related words

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