/ ˌespləˈneɪd; NAmE / noun
a level area of open ground in a town for people to walk along, often by the sea or a river
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WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent. (denoting an area of flat ground on top of a rampart): from French , from Italian spianata , from Latin explanatus flattened, levelled, from explanare , based on planus plain.