Lush Meaning
/ˈlʌʃ/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjJuicy, succulent.
adjMellow; soft; (of ground or soil) easily turned; fertile.
Sentence Examples
The mountains are a lush green in summer.
This land is covered by a verdant carpet of lush vegetation.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ green grass grew quickly after the heavy spring rains.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The island is covered in ____ tropical vegetation and is home to many unique species of animals.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English lusch (“slack, relaxed, limp, loose”), from Old English *lysċ, lesċ (“slack; limp”), from Proto-West Germanic *laskwī̆, from Proto-Germanic *laskuz, *laskwaz (“weak, false, feeble”), from Proto-Indo-European *lēy- (“to let; leave behind”). Akin to Old English lysu, lesu (“false, evil, base”), Middle Low German lasch (“slack”), Middle High German er-leswen (“to become weak”), Old Norse lǫskr (“weak, feeble”), Gothic 𐌻𐌰𐍃𐌹𐍅𐍃 (lasiws, “weak, feeble”), Middle Low German las, lasich (“slack, languid, idle”), Low German lusch (“loose”). Doublet of lusk. More at lishey, lazy.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"How luſh and luſty the graſſe lookes ? How greene ?"
— 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i], page 6:
"Some of the world’s best rain forest and volcanic hiking can be found within the lush canopied Caribbean trail systems. Chock-full of waterfalls and hot springs, bright-colored birds and howling monkeys, flora-lined trails cut through thick, fragrant forests and up cloud-covered mountains."
— 2006, Stefani Jackenthal, New York Times:
"Virmire is a lush world located on the frontier of the Attican Traverse. Its vast seas and orbital position on the inner life zone have created a wide equatorial band of humid, tropical terrain."
— 2008, BioWare, Mass Effect, Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Planets: Virmire Codex entry:
"European adventurers found themselves within a watery world, a tapestry of streams, channels, wetlands, lakes and lush riparian meadows enriched by floodwaters from the Mississippi River."
— 2013 January 26, Nancy Langston, “The Fraught History of a Watery World”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 1, archived from the original on 22 Jan 2013, page 59:
"The birds survived thanks to the mild weather in Caracas and the lush mountains that surround the city, which are covered with trees that provide macaws with fruits and seeds."
— 2026 April 18, Manuel Rueda, “Caracas' iconic macaws threatened by vanishing palm trees”, in National Public Radio, Washington, D.C.: National Public Radio:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ green grass grew quickly after the heavy spring rains.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The island is covered in ____ tropical vegetation and is home to many unique species of animals.