The article analyzes, compares and summarizes the definitions of the polysemantic noun “terra” fixed in explanatory dictionaries. Summarizing lexicographical definitions helps to discover important information on the word semantics, its place in the lexical norm of the modern Portuguese language. The study aims to compile a new list of the word definitions, revised and supplemented on the basis of the conducted analysis. Such an approach allows identifying the total amount, composition and structure of the meanings and can serve as a basis for more comprehensive semantic analysis.