esplanade
/ˈɛspləˌneɪd/ noun
Forms esplanades
- noun A clear space between a citadel and the nearest houses of the town.
- noun The glacis of the counterscarp, or the slope of the parapet of the covered way toward the country.
- noun A grass plat; a lawn.
- noun Any clear, level space used for public walks or drives; especially, a terrace by the seaside.
- noun (Texas) Grassy strips between two divided highway lanes; a traffic island.
Synonyms
Etymology
1590s, from French esplanade (“clear, level space”), from either Spanish esplanada (explanada), form of esplanar (“to flatten, to make level”) or Italian spianata, form of spianare (of the same meaning), both from Latin explānāre, from which English explain; see also plain (“level area, to flatten”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun (a) A clear space between a citadel and the nearest houses of the town. Campbell (Mil. Dict. ).
- noun A grass plat; a lawn. Simmonds.
Etymology [F. esplanade, Sp. esplanada, explanada, cf. It. spianata; fr. Sp. explanar to level, L. explanare to flatten or spread out. See Explain.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “esplanade”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details