ground cover

noun

1

: the small plants on a forest floor except young trees

2

a

: a planting of low plants (such as ivy) that covers the ground in place of turf

b

: a plant adapted for use as ground cover

Examples of ground cover in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ground Covers * Use in-ground sprinklers; select stationary heads for plantings more than a foot tall and low-precipitation-rate heads for ground covers (including lawns) on a slope. —Steve Bender, Southern Living, 29 Apr. 2026

Pink, orange, red, and yellow Shrubs and low-maintenance ground covers give such a nice dose of texture and color to gardens as opposed to your usual grass lawn or pebbled area. —Melissa Epifano, The Spruce, 28 Apr. 2026

This layering trick mimics how plants grow in nature, where ground covers, shrubs and taller specimens share space. —Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Sacbee.com, 28 Apr. 2026

That includes clearing dead or dying vegetation within 100 feet of all structures, landscaping with fire-resistant plans and non-flammable ground cover, and disposing of landscaping debris in other ways. —City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1900, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ground cover

• discover
• hardcover
• recover
• thereover
• uncover
• hover
• plover
• rediscover
• undercover

Kids Definition

ground cover

noun

: low-growing plants that cover the ground (as in a forest or in place of grass or a lawn)

also : a plant used as ground cover