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GRE vocabulary

terrestrial

adjectiveHigh-frequency wordMore T words

relating to the earth or land as opposed to water or air, or of this world rather than a celestial or spiritual one

Word origin: From Latin terra, earth.

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In a sentence

Terrestrial in a sentence

Here are example sentences showing terrestrial in a sentence.

The documentary compared terrestrial ecosystems with those found in the deep ocean.

The probe was designed to compare terrestrial weather patterns with those observed in the upper atmosphere of Venus.

Synonyms
earthlyworldlyland-basedmundane
Antonyms
celestialaquaticaerialextraterrestrial

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Verbal · Text Completion

The committee's report was praised for its candor, yet its central recommendation was so blank that administrators could cite it to justify nearly any policy they had already resolved to pursue.

Select the word that best completes the sentence.

Usage & nuance

Using “terrestrial” well

Terrestrial relates to the earth or land, as opposed to water, air, or the heavens; it can also mean of this world rather than spiritual. Its sense shifts with the contrast: opposed to celestial it means earthly, opposed to aquatic it means land-based.

Common questions

Questions about “terrestrial”

Terrestrial (adjective) means relating to the earth or land as opposed to water or air, or of this world rather than a celestial or spiritual one
Here is terrestrial used in an example sentence: "The documentary compared terrestrial ecosystems with those found in the deep ocean." Another example: "The probe was designed to compare terrestrial weather patterns with those observed in the upper atmosphere of Venus."
Common synonyms for terrestrial include earthly, worldly, land-based, mundane.
Antonyms of terrestrial include celestial, aquatic, aerial, extraterrestrial.
Clusters with earthly, worldly, and land-based in Sentence Equivalence. Its antonyms celestial, aquatic, and extraterrestrial each pick out a different facet of the contrast.
Yes. Terrestrial is a high-frequency GRE word, so it is worth prioritising as you build your vocabulary.

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