land bridge


noun

Geology. an actual or hypothetical strip of land, subject to submergence, that connects adjacent continental landmasses and serves as a route of dispersal for plants and animals: a prehistoric land bridge between Asia and North America.
a transcontinental rail route between countries, as those in Europe and the Far East, considered faster and less costly than all-sea routes.
Also land·bridge [land-brij] /ˈlændˌbrɪdʒ/.

Origin of land bridge

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example sentences from the Web for land bridge

  • The new-comers had migrated from some centre of culture in North Africa, and appear to have crossed over the Italian land-bridge.

    Ancient Man in Britain |Donald A. (Donald Alexander) Mackenzie
  • The easiest crossing to Britain was over the English Channel land-bridge.

    Ancient Man in Britain |Donald A. (Donald Alexander) Mackenzie

British Dictionary definitions for land bridge

land bridge

noun

(in zoogeography) a connecting tract of land between two continents, enabling animals to pass from one continent to the other