landless

English

Etymology

From Middle English londlees, from Old English landlēas, equivalent to land +‎ -less. Cognate with Dutch landeloos (“landless”), German landlos (“landless”), Icelandic landlaus (“landless”).

Adjective

landless (not comparable)

1. Not owning land.

   The landless younger sons of the gentry often entered the military as the only way to make a living.

   The landless flock to the cities seeking jobs.

   • 1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 392:

     By the mid-19th century, the typical village was sharply divided between the landowning class and the landless, voteless and largely illiterate labourers.

2. Not containing any land.

   We set sail toward the landless horizon.

Antonyms

• landed

Derived terms

• farmlessness
• landlessness

Translations

not owning land

Finnish: maaton (fi) Macedonian: безземјен (bezzemjen) Polish: bezrolny (pl) Swedish: jordlös (sv)