Meaning & use
the landing
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Meanings
nounsingular
The act of coming down to the ground or onto a surface, especially after flying or jumping.
Grammar: Used with 'the' to refer to a particular landing event, often after 'the' in phrases like 'the landing was rough'.
Patterns
- the landing of something
- a smooth landing
- the landing was ...
The pilot announced that the landing would be in ten minutes.
The landing was so smooth that we hardly felt the wheels touch the runway.
After the landing, passengers quickly stood up to get their bags.
nouncountable
A floor area at the top of a set of stairs, or the act of bringing a boat or aircraft to shore.
Grammar: Countable when it means a physical platform: 'a landing', 'the landings'. Often used with 'on' or 'at'.
Patterns
- on the landing
- at the landing
- a landing on the stairs
She left her shoes on the landing outside her bedroom.
The house has a wide landing that leads to three bedrooms.
The troops secured the landing before moving inland.
Word forms
| plural | landings |
|---|
Common combinations
- a safe landing
- The pilot made a safe landing despite the strong winds.
- a crash landing
- The plane had to make a crash landing in a field.
- the landing gear
- The landing gear failed to open, so the pilot circled the airport.
- on the landing
- I left the keys on the landing by the front door.
- a soft landing
- The economy is hoping for a soft landing after the crisis.
Synonyms and how they differ
- touchdown
- Used mainly for aircraft or spacecraft; 'landing' is more general and also used for boats and jumps.
- arrival
- Focuses on reaching a place, not the physical act of coming down; 'landing' is more specific to air or sea.
Opposites
Word family
- land verb
- To come down to the ground or a surface.
- lander noun
- A spacecraft designed to land on a planet or moon.
Commonly confused: the landing or landing?
the landing vs landing
Do not confuse with 'landing' as a gerund of 'land' (the act of landing) and 'landing' as a physical platform; context makes it clear.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'the landing' correctly to mean a floor area at the top of stairs?
Choose one answer.
Only option B refers to a physical platform inside a building. The others refer to the act of coming down from the air or sea.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “the landing”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.