as in cliffs
a steep wall of rock, earth, or ice
the castle sits atop an escarpment that for hundreds of years made it virtually invulnerable to attack
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Recent Examples of escarpments
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, 16 Mar. 2026
This park is all escarpments, rivers, and old forests.
—Daniel Scheffler, Forbes.com, 12 Sep. 2025
The national park promises epic escarpments, striking rock formations, and breathtaking bush walks less than an hour west of Sydney by car.
—Matt Ortile, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Oct. 2024
New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
This park is all escarpments, rivers, and old forests.
—Daniel Scheffler, Forbes.com, 12 Sep. 2025
The national park promises epic escarpments, striking rock formations, and breathtaking bush walks less than an hour west of Sydney by car.
—Matt Ortile, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for escarpments
Noun
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The cliffs formed at the end of the Ice Age thanks to glacial activity carving out the gorge.—
Joie Probst,
Midwest Living,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Here, the sun cast stark, dramatic shadows across the moon’s steep cliffs, rugged ripples and seemingly bottomless craters.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
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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
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Dan shone his flashlight in the crags of a rock wall, and the antennae of hundreds of spiny lobsters waved in its beam.—
Betsy Andrews,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Mar. 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
Cite this Entry
“Escarpments.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/escarpments. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
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