steppe

[ step ]

noun

1. an extensive plain, especially one without trees.
2. The Steppes,
   1. Also called Eurasian Steppe,. the vast grasslands stretching from Asia to Eastern Europe, bounded on the north by European and Asian Russia and Siberia.
   2. Kirghiz Steppe.

steppe

/ stɛp /

noun

1. often plural an extensive grassy plain usually without trees Compare prairie pampas

steppe

/ stĕp /

1. A vast, semiarid grassland, as found in southeast Europe, Siberia, and central North America.

Word History and Origins

Origin of steppe¹

First recorded in 1665–75; from Russian step' or Ukrainian step; further origin uncertain

Word History and Origins

Origin of steppe¹

C17: from Old Russian step lowland

Example Sentences

But, “To our surprise, two individuals in the tomb had steppe ancestry”—the adult man and one of the children, a boy—Geigl explains.

From Science Magazine

Thousands of foreign forces in air-conditioned vehicles trundled through the Sahelian steppe, trying to take out terrorist leaders.

From New York Times

Bronze cauldrons were used by the inhabitants of the Mongolian steppe around 2,700 years ago to process animal blood and milk.

From Science Daily

As its name implies, the rhino was adapted for cold weather, thriving in the frigid mammoth steppe tundra and grazing on grasses and sedges.

From Science Magazine

We know that some groups came to Europe from the East Asian and Pontic steppes, but to what extent, if at all, were steppe traditions maintained in Avar society if at all?

From Science Daily

Related Words

• grassland
• prairie
• savanna