Pasture is land covered with grass or other plants used or suitable for the grazing of livestock, such as cows and sheep. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs (non-grass herbaceous plants) . Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep, or swine. Pasture in a wider sense additionally includes rangelands, other unenclosed pastoral systems, and land types used by wild animals for grazing or browsing. Certain types of pasture suit the diet, evolution, and metabolism of particular animals, and their fertilizing and tending of the land may over generations result in the pasture combined with the ruminants in question being integral to a particular ecosystem.

Pasture is typically grazed throughout the summer, in contrast to meadow which is ungrazed or used for grazing only after being mown to make hay for animal fodder. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are distinguished from rangelands by being managed through more intensive agricultural practices of seeding, irrigation, and the use of fertilizers, while rangelands grow primarily native vegetation, managed with extensive practices like controlled burning and regulated intensity of grazing.

Pasture quality is key, and it is important to manage pastures well so that they can have high-quality feed and thrive, resulting in better production from animals. Pasture management involves looking at pastures, measuring how much is growing, what the quality is like, and calculating how much feed is available to feed animals. Pasture needs good soil to start, the right level of nutrients and fertilizers, good moisture, and it also needs to be managed well to avoid damage to the pasture.