earthwork

noun earth·work \ ˈərth-ˌwərk \

|Updated on: 13 Jul 2018

Definition of earthwork

1 : an embankment or other construction made of earth; especially : one used as a field fortification

2 : the operations connected with excavations and embankments of earth

3 : a work of art consisting of a portion of land modified by an artist

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Recent Examples of earthwork from the Web

In later digs Noël Hume determined that the ditch alongside the earthwork cuts across the workshop—suggesting the fort was built after the lab and possibly wasn't even Elizabethan.

— andrew lawler, Science | AAAS, "Archaeologists start a new hunt for the fabled Lost Colony of the New World," 6 June 2018
Read more: The announcement was made during a news conference Thursday, June 21 at Grand Rapids Project X — an asphalt earthwork built in 1974 between Lookout Park and Belknap Park.

— wzzm-tv (grand rapids), Detroit Free Press, "ArtPrize will take place every other year in Grand Rapids," 21 June 2018
This strategy is allowing roadway rebuilding more quickly and at a lower cost than other alternatives such as structures, a tunnel or major earthwork that puts additional fill into the ocean, the transportation department said.

— Fox News, "California eyes July for reopening iconic Highway 1 stretch," 13 June 2018
Digs near the earthwork in the 1890s and 1940s yielded little.

— andrew lawler, Science | AAAS, "Archaeologists start a new hunt for the fabled Lost Colony of the New World," 6 June 2018
The Native Americans anticipated Olmsted by many hundreds of years and built elaborate earthworks and burial mounds all over the midwest.

— aimee levitt, Chicago Reader, "Lincoln, lizard mounds, angels, devil’s curses, and junk food magnates: midwestern cemeteries have ’em all," 30 May 2018
In back, the gentle rises in the lawn are actually part of a Maya Lin earthwork, Lay of the Land.

— ted loos, WSJ, "The Hamptons Oasis That Barnes & Noble Built," 24 May 2018
Companies receiving contracts, their locations, and the nature of the work are: A.W. Oakes and Sons, Racine, aggregate and earthwork.

— rick romell, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Foxconn site preparation to begin this afternoon," 7 May 2018
Today, 80 out of 120 earthen mounds dating from A.D. 1050 to 1200 still exist, including the 100-foot-tall Monks Mound, the largest earthwork in North America and the only mound visitors can climb.

— andrea sachs, chicagotribune.com, "This summer, stop by the 23 U.S. locales that have risen to become UNESCO World Heritage sites," 4 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'earthwork.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of earthwork

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in the meaning defined at sense 1

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EARTHWORK Defined for English Language Learners

earthwork

noun

Definition of earthwork for English Language Learners

: a raised bank or wall made of soil

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