subterraneansub‧ter‧ra‧ne‧an /ˌsʌbtəˈreɪniən◂/ adjective [usually before noun] 
Word Origin
subterranean passage
Word OriginWORD ORIGINsubterranean
ExamplesOrigin:
1600-1700 Latin subterraneus, from terra ‘earth’EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- subterranean passages
- a subterranean explosion
- A subterranean stream is believed to flow underneath the town.
- Electronic sensors have located a huge subterranean cavern in the Sierre Madre mountain range.
- Every deep-earth geophysicist has his or her own version of this subterranean landscape.
- In fact, most of the central section has all but disappeared, the river now wending its subterranean way beneath the town.
- Now she did a very curious thing: she explored all the subterranean passages connecting the Columbia buildings.
- She is associated with a bridge, a subterranean aqueduct and a magic distaff, one of the symbols of Athene.
- She snarled as she leapt from her subterranean tunnel out into the sunlight, on to the bloodstained sand.
- Since then, they have represented the darker, subterranean forces of nature.
- The footing corals start to anchor down on the loose rocks, and the subterranean sponges burrow underneath.
- To the Incas hell was a subterranean, cold place where you lived on stones: heaven was with the sun.
Longman Language Activatorunder the ground or under water► under
Collocations · It is one of the largest mountain ranges under the Pacific Ocean.· Several of the stolen items were found buried under Mackie's house.· When the project is finished, most of Boston's major roads will run under the city.
► beneath under - used in formal writing or in literature: · Far beneath the waters of the North Atlantic lies the wreck of the great liner, the Titanic.· Petroleum occurs in natural deposits beneath the surface of the earth.
► underground/below ground under the ground: · The men work underground for 12 hours a day.· The explosives will be stored below ground in concrete bunkers.10 metres underground/two miles underground etc: · The nuclear waste is buried a half-mile underground.
► subterranean below the ground: · A subterranean stream is believed to flow underneath the town.· a subterranean explosion· Electronic sensors have located a huge subterranean cavern in the Sierre Madre mountain range.
► underwater/under water under the water: · I don't like opening my eyes underwater.· a camera specially designed for use under water· On land the seal is a clumsy creature, but underwater it moves with grace and agility.
► submerged just under the surface of the water: · The boat hit a submerged rock.· Sometimes at low tide you can just see the submerged wreck of a large ship.partially/partly submerged: · The flight recorder was found smashed and partially submerged in a creek nearby.
WORD SETS► Earth Sciencesavalanche, nounaxis, nouncatchment area, nouncrater, noundinosaur, noundivide, nounelement, nounextinct, adjectivegallery, noungeo-, prefixgeophysics, nounglacial, adjectiveglaciation, noungoldfield, nounlandslide, nounlandslip, nounleach, verbmagnetic pole, nounmagnitude, nounmantle, nounmeteorite, nounmolten, adjectivemother lode, nounnatural history, nounonyx, nounopal, nounozone layer, nounpaleontology, nounpitchblende, nounPleistocene, adjectivePliocene, adjectiveprimeval, adjectivequake, verbquake, nounrarefied, adjectiverock, verbscour, verbshock wave, nounslide, nounsoapstone, nounstony, adjectivestream, nounstrip mine, nounsubcontinent, nounsubterranean, adjectivesuperficial, adjectiveterrain, nounterrestrial, adjectivetremor, nounundercurrent, nounvolcanic, adjectivevolcano, nounvortex, nounwater table, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES► an underground/subterranean passage
beneath the surface of the Earth SYN underground: · The air in these underground passages is cold and damp.
subterranean passage