Terra firma

Origin

New Latin, literally, solid land. Denoting the territories on the Italian mainland that were subject to the state of Venice): from Latin, literally ‘firm land.’

• 1638

Definition

Terra firma is a Latin phrase meaning "solid earth" (from terra, meaning "earth", and firma, meaning "solid"). The phrase refers to the dry land mass on the earth's surface and is used to differentiate from the sea or air.