RIFT VALLEY Synonyms: 32 Similar and Opposite Words

rift valley

noun

Definition of rift valley

as in canyon

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of rift valley The rift valleys of East Africa are some of the largest and most spectacular topographic features on Earth. — David Bressan, Forbes.com, 27 May 2025 There is a rift valley on the Rio Grande in the desert of New Mexico where an award-winning home sits. — Jennifer Castenson, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024 Rather than having a central volcano, the Reykjanes Peninsula is dominated by a rift valley with lava fields and cones. — Alexandra Banner, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024 Valles Marineris is thought to be a rift valley, formed by uplift when hot material from the Mars's mantle bubbled up and stretched the planet's crust. — Discover Magazine, 20 Oct. 2010 See All Example Sentences for rift valley

Recent Examples of Synonyms for rift valley

Noun

This also includes the largest American variant, the western mastiff, with a wingspan of nearly two feet, and the smallest, the thumb-sized, nickel-weighing western pipistrelle, also called the canyon bat.

— Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Water Canyon Campground Water Canyon Campground is tucked away inside an oceanfront canyon on Santa Rosa Island, offering some protection from the park’s strong winds.

— Cu Fleshman, Travel + Leisure, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of canyon

Noun

The rocks and melted water suddenly swelled the rivers in the valleys below, causing torrents of water that swept buildings, bridges and earth downstream in Tibet and Nepal.

— CBS News, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026
Many flood-prone valleys in the country have warning alarms, but as NPR has reported, the government has struggled to keep up with the cost of maintaining the systems.

— Ava Berger, NPR, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of valley

Noun

Santa Cruz Police Department The driver and another occupant ran away into a nearby ravine where a K-9 officer was used to apprehend the driver.

— Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026
The driver ran from the disabled SUV into a nearby ravine but was arrested after officers sent a police dog to capture him, police said.

— Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of ravine

Noun

Hazlewood also captured Taijul Islam, taken at gully by Green for 17.

— ABC News, ABC News, 14 Aug. 2026
Sarah’s partner Elijah, Karissa and I continued up into the mountains, scrambling over loose rocks to get closer to a gully carved into the side of a mountain towering behind the pools.

— Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 July 2026

Definition of gully

Noun

The glacier was likely a cirque glacier, the officials said, which is a glacier that has formed in a depression or basin high in the mountains.

— Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 27 Aug. 2026
Sprague said the motive in the killings came down to giving Clancy a way out of her depression.

— Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of depression

Noun

The series will follow a local estate owner, the Laird of Castle Drummoch (Branagh), who challenges the ambitions of an American billionaire intent on buying up large swaths of the glens.

— Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 22 July 2026
Set in the modern Scottish Highlands, Laird is an epic family saga in which a proud Scot defies a shadowy American billionaire hellbent on buying up the glens.

— Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 22 July 2026

Definition of glen

Browse Nearby Words

rifts

rift valley

rift valleys

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Rift valley.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rift%20valley. Accessed 30 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of rift valley

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on rift valley

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

illustrious

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words

Popular in Wordplay

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Games & Quizzes