pasture

pasture — noun

1. open grassy land where cows, sheep, and other farm animals feed, or the grass gr

1.nounC1
Definition

open grassy land where cows, sheep, and other farm animals feed, or the grass growing there for them to eat

Example

The horses ran across the wet pasture behind the red barn.

By July, the hillside pasture was dry and full of dust.

Common collocations
  • wet pasture
  • hillside pasture
  • fresh pasture
  • good pasture
  • move sheep to pasture
  • pasture fence
Synonyms
  • grazing land

    plain descriptive phrase for land where animals feed

  • meadow

    grassy field, but not always meant for feeding farm animals

  • range

    larger open grazing area, especially in American English

  • pastureland

    more formal noun for this type of land

Grammar Patterns

in pasture

move animals to pasture

Usage Note

Usually used for land kept for cows, sheep, goats, or horses. For grassy land without the idea of animals feeding there, words like 'field' or 'meadow' are often more natural.

Common Mistakes

We played soccer in the pasture at school.
We played soccer on the field at school.
a pasture is land mainly kept for farm animals to eat on.

pasture — verb

Word family

  • pastureland
    nounC2
  • pasturage
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

These words all describe open land, but they do not point to the same use. A pasture is land meant for animals such as cows, sheep, or horses to feed on, so it carries a clear farming idea. A meadow is simply a grassy area, often natural or used for hay or flowers, and it does not always suggest grazing animals. A field is the broad everyday word for an open piece of land and may grow crops, hold games, or stand empty. Range usually means a much larger grazing area, especially in American English and ranching contexts. Say 'The sheep were moved to a new pasture,' but 'The children ran across the field,' and 'Wildflowers covered the meadow.'

pasture ↗meadowfield ↗range ↗

Etymology

LatinLate LatinAnglo-FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

English took pasture from Anglo-French, which had it from Late Latin 'pastura', a noun built from the Latin verb 'pascere', meaning 'to feed'. The word has kept that feeding idea all the way into modern English, whether it names the grassy land itself or the action of letting animals eat there.