oasis
/əʊˈeɪsɪs
/noun (plural oases /əʊˈeɪsiːz/)
1A fertile spot in a desert, where water is found: a country of oases and burning desert sands...
- As deserts have oases, oceans have islands, and naturalists have found over 60 species of fish which were never documented before 1973.
- Much of Uzbekistan's landscape consists of deserts, dry steppes, and fertile oases near rivers.
- The northern part of the country is desert, spotted with oases, where most of the population is concentrated.
Synonyms
watering hole, watering place, water hole, spring;
Australian gnamma, claypan
1.1A pleasant or peaceful area or period in the midst of a difficult or hectic place or situation: the park is an oasis of calm in the centre of the city...
- A short walk out of the centre brings you to the cool stone walls of the cloistered courtyard, a welcome oasis of calm away from the busy city streets.
- The theme parks are ordered oases of calm serving up safe family entertainment.
- The farm is a three-acre oasis in an area of suburban development.
Synonyms
refuge, haven, safe haven, retreat, sanctuary, sanctum, shelter, resting place, hiding place, harbour, asylum, hideaway, hideout
2 (Oasis) [mass noun] trademark A type of rigid foam into which the stems of flowers can be secured in flower arranging: cover the ball of Oasis with leaves and moss...
- Florist foam, also known as Oasis, is the main medium for holding most flower arrangements in place.
- To achieve the correct size of the oasis for the container, press the opening of the vase on to the oasis and then try to cut out the exact shape with a sharp knife.
- If you are creating large or longer hanging dried flower arrangements, two or more bricks of oasis can be fixed together by running strong wires through the plastic container.
Origin
Early 17th century: via late Latin from Greek, apparently of Egyptian origin.
In the classical world Oasis was the name of a particular fertile spot in the Libyan desert. It came ultimately from an ancient Egyptian word for ‘dwelling place’. By the early 19th century the word was being used for a place of calm in the midst of trouble or bustle. In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Sign of Four (1890), a character describes his richly furnished house as being ‘an oasis of art in the howling desert of South London’.
Rhymes
- country music
- country note
- country park
- country party
- country people
- country pepper
- country pie
- country-plain
- countrypolitan
- country road
- country rock
- country rocker
- country seat
- country-selling
- country service
- countryside
- countryside campaigner
- Countryside Commission
- countryside ranger
- country singer
- country store
- country-style
- country sugar
- country talk
- country town