pampas

[ pam-puhz; attributively pam-puhs; Spanish pahm-pahs ]

plural noun

, singular pam·pa [pam, -p, uh, pahm, -pah].

1. the vast grassy plains of southern South America, especially in Argentina.

pampas

/ pæmˈpiːən; ˈpæmpɪən; ˈpæmpəz /

noun

1. functioning as singular or more often plural
   1. the extensive grassy plains of temperate South America, esp in Argentina
   2. ( as modifier )

      pampas dwellers

Derived Forms

• pampean, adjective

Other Words From

• pam·pe·an [pam-, pee, -, uh, n, pam, -pee-, uh, n], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pampas¹

First recorded in 1695–1705; from Latin American Spanish, plural of pampa, from Quechua: “flat, unbounded plain”

Word History and Origins

Origin of pampas¹

C18: from American Spanish pampa (sing), from Quechua bamba plain

Example Sentences

Horticultural invasives, such as butterfly bush, English ivy, pampas grass and many other garden favorites that have escaped cultivation, are of increasing concern.

From Seattle Times

Whereas glass scrapers were an incremental improvement over flint and obsidian, the introduction of the horse sparked a profound shift on the open grasslands, or pampas, of Patagonia.

From Science Magazine

Years ago, when he read Bruce Chatwin’s “In Patagonia,” he retraced the writer’s 168-mile trek across the pampas of South America to the Cave of the Giant Sloth.

From Los Angeles Times

He pointed to a cavernous undercut that likely destabilized the bluff and noted the clusters of pampas grass, a fluffy, straw-colored weed that wedges its roots into the rocky cracks and joints.

From Los Angeles Times

Outside the city, on the broad and dusty plain of the pampas, is the landscape that provides the country its power.

From New York Times

Related Words

• pasture
• plain
• prairie
• savanna
• steppe