marshland

IPA/ˈmɑːʃlænd/
KK[mˈɑrʃlˌænd]IPA/ˈmɑːrʃlænd/

marshland — noun

  • marshlandsingular
  • marshlandsplural

1. a broad area of low ground that stays wet, often with reeds, grass, and shallow

1.nounC1
Definition

a broad area of low ground that stays wet, often with reeds, grass, and shallow pools

Example

The train crossed miles of marshland before reaching the fishing town.

collocation: miles of marshland

Isabela photographed herons rising from the marshland at sunrise.

pattern: marshland + wildlife scene

Common collocations
  • coastal marshland
  • stretch of marshland
  • marshland habitat
  • drain marshland
  • protected marshland
  • marshland birds
Synonyms
  • marsh

    usually the wet habitat itself, especially with reeds and shallow water

  • wetland

    a broader scientific term that includes marshland, swamps, and bogs

  • swamp

    usually wetter and more wooded than marshland

Antonyms
  • dry land

    ground that is firm and not waterlogged

Grammar Patterns

marshland

a stretch of marshland

the marshlands

Usage Note

Usually uncountable when you mean this kind of landscape in general. Use a count form mainly for one particular area or for several separate regions, such as a marshland near the coast or the northern marshlands.

Common Mistakes

The pond is a marshland.
The land around the pond is marshland.
Marshland is the wet ground itself, not a single pool of water.
We drove across a small marshland puddle.
We drove across a stretch of marshland.
Marshland refers to a broad wet area, not a tiny muddy patch.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Marshland names a broad stretch of wet ground, so it draws attention to the land area itself. A marsh is often the actual wet habitat with reeds, grasses, and shallow water; in many contexts, marshland is the wider area that contains a marsh. Wetland is the broad scientific umbrella term and can include marshes, swamps, bogs, and fens. Swamp usually suggests a wetter place with more trees and shrubs than marshland. Bog points to acidic, peat-rich ground rather than general wet low land. In everyday writing, choose marshland when you want to describe a wide, soggy region on a map or in a landscape scene, and choose marsh when you mean the habitat more directly.

marsh ↗wetland ↗swamp ↗bog ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • coastal marshland
  • stretch of marshland
  • marshland habitat

Prepositions

  • across marshland
  • through marshland
  • over marshland
  • near marshland

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

Marshland is a compound built from marsh and land. Marsh goes back to Old English mersc, meaning a wet, boggy place, while land comes from Old English land. Together they developed into a straightforward term for a broad area made up of marsh or wet low ground.

First known use

12th century

12th century, in the meaning defined above