Skip to main content

savannaa grassy plain in tropical and subtropical regions, with few trees

Part of speech: NOUN

Definition: a grassy plain in tropical and subtropical regions, with few trees

Pronunciation (IPA): /səˈvænə/

Example Sentences

  • The safari guide said we'd find more animals in the savanna than in his dating app.
  • Climate change is affecting savanna ecosystems worldwide.
  • Elephants migrate across the savanna following seasonal rains.

savanna

NOUN

[/səˈvænə/]

a grassy plain in tropical and subtropical regions, with few trees

Grassy plains with scattered trees
💡 Concept

Grassy plains with scattered trees

In the savanna, wearing a bandana, eating a banana!
🎵 Rhyme

In the savanna, wearing a bandana, eating a banana!

Got the picture? Now let's practice.

🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/səˈvænə/
🇬🇧 UK/səˈvænə/

🌳Etymology

Origin

The word savanna derives from the Taíno language of the Caribbean, where 'zabana' referred to a wide, open plain. Spanish explorers in the 16th century borrowed this term from indigenous populations and transmitted it to English, where it eventually came to denote tropical or subtropical grasslands.

Breakdown

Taíno zabana → Spanish sabana → English savanna. The term originates from the Taíno root zabana (open plain/grassland), which was hispanicized to sabana and subsequently adopted into English with the phonetic variation savanna.

🎵Rhyme

bananabandanacabana
cabana
banana
bandana

🔗Collocations

African savanna
tropical savanna
savanna grassland
savanna climate
vast savanna
savanna wildlife

📝Examples

😄 Fun example

The safari guide said we'd find more animals in the savanna than in his dating app.

Climate change is affecting savanna ecosystems worldwide.

Elephants migrate across the savanna following seasonal rains.

😄 Fun example

My GPS got confused in the savanna and kept suggesting I make a U-turn at the nearest baobab tree.

📚Related Words

Synonyms

grasslandprairieplainsteppe

Antonyms

forestjunglewoodland

Related

ecosystemwildlifedroughtmigrationgrazing

Want to master 19,000+ words?

Sign up free for flashcards & quizzes.