public land

[puhb-lik land] / ˈpʌb lɪk ˈlænd /

NOUN

land that is open to public

Synonyms

WEAK

government land national forest national park national wildlife refuge nature conservancy land unappropriated land

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Journalist Prabhu Chawla criticised clubs like the Gymkhana as exclusionary institutions operating on heavily subsidised public land.

From BBC • May 25, 2026

On public land or highways, responsibility for disposal rests with the local council, if ownership cannot be determined.

From BBC • Apr. 19, 2026

California is home to more than 15 million acres of public land managed by the federal Bureau of Land Management.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

In the fall of 2023, a crew of geologists reported that the public land it was looking at in Esmeralda County didn’t seem all that promising.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 21, 2026

“We tracked both sides of the public land along Squaretail Brook, all the way down that hillside to where it runs into the Beal River.”

From "The Benefits of Being an Octopus" by Ann Braden