landing

American  

[lan-ding] / ˈlæn dɪŋ /

noun

1. the act of a person or thing that lands.

   The pilot brought his plane in for a landing.

2. a place where persons or goods are landed, as from a ship.

   The boat moored at the landing.

3. Architecture.

   1. a platform between flights of stairs.

   2. the floor at the head or foot of a flight of stairs.

4. Shipbuilding.

   1. the overlap of two plates or planks, as in a clinker-built shell.

   2. the distance between the center of a rivet hole and the edge of the plate or shape into which it is cut.

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landing British  

/ ˈlændɪŋ /

noun

1. 1. the act of coming to land, esp after a flight or sea voyage

   2. ( as modifier )

      landing place

2. a place of disembarkation

3. the floor area at the top of a flight of stairs or between two flights of stairs

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Usage

What does landing mean? Landing is the act of returning to the ground after having been in flight or up in the air. It can also be used to refer to the act of returning to the land after having been in water. Landing also commonly refers to an instance of doing this. This especially involves aircraft, as in That was a rough landing. But it can also be applied to a person, as in She’ll have to stick the landing if she wants a perfect score. Landing can also mean a place where ships can dock. It can also refer to the floor at the top of a flight of stairs or the platform between two flights of stairs. The landing often has a bigger surface area than the steps and is usually positioned between flights when they change directions. The word landing comes is also the continuous tense (-ing form) of the verb land, as in We will be landing shortly. Example: I’m much more nervous during the landing than at takeoff.

Other Word Forms

• postlanding adjective

Etymology

Origin of landing

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; land, -ing ¹

Example Sentences

They circled the moon without landing and then splashed down in the Pacific Ocean near Samoa.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026

Saavedra briefly entertained the name “Charro,” a reference to Mexican cowboys, before landing on Tapatío, a nickname used for people born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, where all three of his children were born.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 12, 2026

Civil aviation authority chief Aziz said that "only on two or three occasions maximum" a commercial plane delayed a landing due to Israeli military action.

From Barron's • Apr. 11, 2026

"A perfect bull's eye splashdown for Integrity and its four astronauts," Nasa commentator Rob Navias said moments after the landing.

From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026

Mr. Retro comes to a soft landing in our backyard.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

Related Words

• dock