Meaning & use
landmark
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Meanings
nouncountable
A building or natural feature that is easy to see and helps people find their way or recognize a place.
Grammar: Countable: a landmark, several landmarks.
Patterns
- a landmark in something
- a landmark for someone
The clock tower is the best-known landmark in the old town.
We used the water tower as a landmark to find the farm.
The bridge became a famous landmark of the city.
nouncountablefigurative
An event or achievement that marks an important stage or turning point in the history of something.
Grammar: Often followed by in: a landmark in medicine.
Patterns
- a landmark in something
The discovery was a landmark in the history of medicine.
Reaching a million users was a landmark for the small company.
The treaty stands as a landmark in international cooperation.
nouncountable
A building or site that is officially protected because of its historical or cultural importance.
Grammar: Often appears in the phrase historic landmark.
Patterns
- designate something as a landmark
The council declared the old theater a landmark, so it cannot be torn down.
The house is a protected landmark, and owners must keep its original windows.
adjectivebefore a noun
Marking a major and important change, especially in law or in some field of work.
Grammar: Comes before a noun: a landmark case, not the case is landmark.
Patterns
- a landmark ruling
- a landmark decision
The court issued a landmark ruling on privacy.
The landmark study changed how doctors treat the illness.
Voters approved a landmark law protecting the river.
Word forms
| plural | landmarks |
|---|
Common combinations
- historic landmark
- The lighthouse is a historic landmark visited by thousands.
- local landmark
- The giant oak is a local landmark everyone knows.
- landmark decision
- The landmark decision reshaped public education.
- landmark case
- The lawyer cited a landmark case in her argument.
- landmark achievement
- The first flight across the strait was a landmark achievement.
Synonyms and how they differ
- milestone
- Milestone fits stages of progress or personal life, while landmark more often fits a place or an important legal or scientific event.
- monument
- Monument is something built to honor a person or event, but a landmark can be any recognizable feature.
- turning point
- Turning point stresses that things changed direction, whereas landmark stresses significance.
- sight
- Sight is a more casual word for a thing worth seeing, with no sense of importance in history.
Word family
Commonly confused: landmark or milestone?
landmark vs milestone
A milestone is a stage in a process, while a landmark is a visible place or a particularly important event.
Practice
Historians describe the 1954 court decision as a ___ ruling that changed schooling across the country.
Choose one answer.
A landmark ruling is one of major importance. Landslide describes a big election win or a fall of earth, and does not collocate with ruling.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “landmark”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.