topsoil en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From top + soil.
Meanings
-
(countable, uncountable) The upper layer of soil, typically most fertile and in which it is the easiest to start new plants.
Little grew on the farm, after the floods from the hurricane washed away the topsoil.
Without urgent action, the majority of the Earth’s topsoil could be severely degraded or lost before the end of this century. In China, topsoil is being lost fifty-seven times faster than this natural replacement process; in Europe seventeen times faster.
2013, Al Gore, “Outgrowth”, in The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change, New York, N.Y.: Random House, →ISBN, page 183:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| topsoils | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| top soil | alternative | lexicographic |
Relateds
Synonyms
Translations (29)
izh leipämaa (upper layer of soil) · pl poziom próchniczy (upper layer of soil) · rm terratsch (upper layer of soil) · it soprassuolo (upper layer of soil) · cmn 表土 (upper layer of soil) · hu talajréteg (upper layer of soil) · ko 표토 (upper layer of soil) · nb matjord (upper layer of soil) · hu termőtalajréteg (upper layer of soil) · rm terra naira (upper layer of soil) · ru верхний слой почвы (upper layer of soil) · ru пахотный слой (upper layer of soil) · de Muttererde (upper layer of soil) · haw lepo uhi (upper layer of soil) · ko 겉흙 (upper layer of soil) · de Mutterboden (upper layer of soil) · es suelo superficial (upper layer of soil) · sv matjord (upper layer of soil) · mi paraumu (upper layer of soil) · mk жи́вица (upper layer of soil) · cy uwchbridd (upper layer of soil) · fi pintamaa (upper layer of soil) · fr sol superficiel (upper layer of soil) · hu termőföld (upper layer of soil) · cs ornice (upper layer of soil) · hu termőtalaj (upper layer of soil) · izh pintamaa (upper layer of soil) · tl dayagsulip (upper layer of soil) · nn matjord (upper layer of soil)