soft land

Meanings

1. 1verbtransitive or intransitive

   To bring an aircraft or spacecraft to the ground gently and safely, without damage.

   Grammar: Can be used with an object (soft land the capsule) or without one (the capsule soft landed).

   Patterns

   • soft land something
   • soft land on something

   The team managed to soft land the probe on the surface of the moon.

   Engineers hope the capsule will soft land in the desert.

   They practiced how to soft land the aircraft in an emergency.

2. 2verbtransitivebusinessfinance

   To help an economy or organization change gradually and without severe problems.

   Grammar: Often used with 'economy' or 'market': soft land the economy.

   Patterns

   • soft land the economy
   • soft land a market

   The central bank tried to soft land the economy after years of rapid growth.

   Policymakers want to soft land the housing market rather than let it crash.

   It is difficult to soft land an economy that has been growing so fast.

Word forms

Common combinations

soft land a spacecraft

The company aims to soft land a spacecraft on Mars by 2030.

soft land the economy

The government's plan is to soft land the economy without causing high unemployment.

soft land on the moon

The lander will soft land on the moon's south pole.

soft land a market

They tried to soft land the stock market after the bubble burst.

Synonyms and how they differ

touch down

Used for any landing, gentle or not; 'soft land' emphasizes that there is no damage.

land

More general; 'soft land' specifically means a gentle, safe landing.

Opposites

Word family

soft landing noun

A gentle landing or a gradual economic slowdown.

soft-land verb

Variant spelling with a hyphen.

Commonly confused: soft land or soft loan?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “soft land”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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