escarpment

noun

es·​carp·​ment i-ˈskärp-mənt 

1

: a steep slope in front of a fortification

2

: a long cliff or steep slope separating two comparatively level or more gently sloping surfaces and resulting from erosion or faulting

Synonyms

• barranca
• barranco
• bluff
• cliff
• crag
• palisade
• precipice
• scar
• scarp

Examples of escarpment in a Sentence

the castle sits atop an escarpment that for hundreds of years made it virtually invulnerable to attack

Recent Examples on the Web

The formation is a 10-foot wide, 100-foot deep crack through a sandstone escarpment into a gorge. —Korrin Bishop, Southern Living, 4 July 2024

Dream sweetly surrounded by sandstone escarpments at Enchantment Resort. —Emily Pennington, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Mar. 2023

My team’s research has shown that this limitation has likely stopped them from traveling across the escarpments of the Great Rift Valley in East Africa. —Douglas R. Cavener, Discover Magazine, 6 June 2024

Jim Jim Falls — Australia These Australian falls drop over a rocky escarpment to the earth 656 feet below. —Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 4 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

French escarpement, from escarper to scarp, from Middle French, from escarpe scarp, from Old Italian scarpa — more at scarp

First Known Use

circa 1802, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

escarpment

noun

es·​carp·​ment is-ˈkärp-mənt 

1

: a steep slope in front of a fort or defensive area

2

: a long cliff