Definition of "low-lying" []

• Lying close to water or ground level: low-lying coastal areas. (adjective)
• Situated below the normal height or altitude: low-lying deserts of central Arizona. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The town is characterized by low-lying adobe houses like this one, on lots of an acre or more; vineyards and apple orchards; and livestock fields."
• "In the Marshallese language spoken by the Micronesians of Bikini Atoll, bikini is a compound word formed of pik, meaning “flat surface”—in reference to the low-lying form of the coral reef atoll, as opposed to the mountainous shapes of islands formed by volcanoes—and ni, “coconut.”"
• "Who one earth would want to live on a low-lying flood plain in a zone known for its earthquakes?"