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Added 9 October 2026

steppe

/stɛp/ noun

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about steppe at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

The grasslands of Eastern Europe and Asia. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
A vast, cold, dry, grassy plain.

Origin

From German Steppe or French steppe, in turn from Russian степь (stepʹ, “flat grassy plain”) or Ukrainian степ (step). There is no generally accepted earlier etymology, but there is a speculative Old East Slavic reconstruction *сътепь (sŭtepĭ, “trampled place, flat, bare”), related to топот (topot), топтать (toptatĭ).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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