as in escarpments
a steep wall of rock, earth, or ice
the cliff rises 200 feet from the island's south shore
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cliffs
Capitol Reef National Park, Utah Straddling a huge portion of southern Utah, Capitol Reef owes its name to the vivid imagination of early settlers, who thought one of its giant white-rock formations resembled a capitol building dome and its jagged cliffs an underwater reef.
—
Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 8 May 2026
Both the city of San Diego and San Diego County are facing budget cliffs.
—Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026
No injuries were reported, but the tsunami stripped vegetation from steep rock lining the near 25 mile-long fjord with cliffs stretching more than 3,280 feet high, according to Dan Shugar, lead author of the study published May 6 in the journal Science.
—Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 6 May 2026
Encounters with whales, dolphins and penguins awaited; landscapes of icy expanses, towering cliffs and rolling green hills beckoned.
—Hira Humayun, CNN Money, 6 May 2026
Caves, cliffs, and other stunning rock formations are waiting to be explored at nearby Hocking Hills State Park.
—Erika Ebsworth-Goold, Midwest Living, 6 May 2026
Funding cliffs The funding cuts couldn’t have come at a worse time.
—Andrea Hagan, The Conversation, 6 May 2026
Zion Canyon Scenic Drive, Zion National Park, Utah Zion National Park in southwestern Utah is known for spectacular scenery that includes colorful mountains, peaks, sandstone formations, canyons, waterfalls, cliffs, and wildlife.
—Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 3 May 2026
Several storms and a brutal Winter ate away at the dunes, which left behind steep cliffs.
—Ryan Hughes, CBS News, 1 May 2026
Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 8 May 2026
Both the city of San Diego and San Diego County are facing budget cliffs.
—Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026
No injuries were reported, but the tsunami stripped vegetation from steep rock lining the near 25 mile-long fjord with cliffs stretching more than 3,280 feet high, according to Dan Shugar, lead author of the study published May 6 in the journal Science.
—Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 6 May 2026
Encounters with whales, dolphins and penguins awaited; landscapes of icy expanses, towering cliffs and rolling green hills beckoned.
—Hira Humayun, CNN Money, 6 May 2026
Caves, cliffs, and other stunning rock formations are waiting to be explored at nearby Hocking Hills State Park.
—Erika Ebsworth-Goold, Midwest Living, 6 May 2026
Funding cliffs The funding cuts couldn’t have come at a worse time.
—Andrea Hagan, The Conversation, 6 May 2026
Zion Canyon Scenic Drive, Zion National Park, Utah Zion National Park in southwestern Utah is known for spectacular scenery that includes colorful mountains, peaks, sandstone formations, canyons, waterfalls, cliffs, and wildlife.
—Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 3 May 2026
Several storms and a brutal Winter ate away at the dunes, which left behind steep cliffs.
—Ryan Hughes, CBS News, 1 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cliffs
Noun
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Just as the sun prepared to sink beyond the escarpments, its rays struck every piece of the fractured glass resting on top of the window frames, alighting all of them at once, as if they were shot with electricity.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
16 Mar. 2026
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This park is all escarpments, rivers, and old forests.—
Daniel Scheffler,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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That's why there are so few of us clinging to the crags of Mount Everest or decamping to Antarctica.—
Ari Daniel,
NPR,
23 Apr. 2026
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Coastal cliffs and crags are punctuated by black-sand beaches, and rich rain forests hide a towering volcanic cone.—
Carley Rojas Avila,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
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In 2014, the regional nonprofit group SOS Sahel came to Barkadroussou and taught villagers to stabilize the dunes by building palisades of palm fronds.—
Julie Bourdin,
NPR,
11 Apr. 2026
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Characteristic of the late Bronze Age or Iron Age periods of European history, hillforts generally refer to fortified, elevated settlements that were surrounded by barriers—usually made of earth, stone or wooden palisades—that created an enclosure.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The parking lot sits right above the Pacific, with the ballfield another 50 feet up the bluffs.—
Sean Joseph OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
10 May 2026
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On the morning before his final Governor’s Fishing Opener in the title role, Tim Walz stood on the Stillwater waterfront, posing for myriad pictures and doing interviews with the community’s iconic Lift Bridge and the bluffs of Wisconsin behind him.—
Jess Myers,
Twin Cities,
8 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cliffs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cliffs. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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