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

When the sun goes down, the wind picks up in central New Mexico, whipping through arid canyons with a ghostly howl that for centuries, locals have likened to the wails of the folkloric ghost La Llorona.

— Sara Herschander, Vox, 22 Oct. 2026
There is a pleasant little trail from the test plot that goes through the canyon.

— Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of canyon

Noun

Outside, the rocky surfaces of the gorge’s walls alternate between light and shadow while the river glints in the midday sun.

— Sarah Kuta, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Nov. 2026
For years, a leopard roamed the high mountain ridges and deep gorges in the sparsely populated region of southern Armenia.

— Eric Niiler, New York Times, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of gorge

Noun

Plans call for two large dams about 300 feet high, as well as nine smaller ones, holding water pumped from the Sacramento River and inundating about 15,000 acres in a valley northwest of Sacramento.

— Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2026
Finally, when the incentives for private investment still do not line up for certain projects, G-7 countries should use public capital to directly help mining companies escape the valley of death.

— Tom Moerenhout, Foreign Affairs, 4 Nov. 2026

Definition of valley

Noun

But only a handful of souls have ever gone up the treacherous, unforgiving north face — 9,000 steep miles of snow, rock and ice with a gnarly gully given the forbidding name the Hornbein Couloir.

— Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026
Jansen then trapped Travis Head lbw for 14 after a review and Simon Harmer took a superb catch at gully to send back Marnus Labuschagne (14) with Australia reduced to 45-4 in 14 overs.

— ABC News, ABC News, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of gully

Noun

It’s found to result in improved coping, increased mental clarity, better emotion regulation, reduced depression, and ironically less loneliness.

— Cheryl Fenton, Flow Space, 5 Nov. 2026
Anxiety and depression are common symptoms of the condition that intensify in the days leading up to a woman’s period.

— IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of depression

Noun

Set in the modern Scottish Highlands, Laird is an epic family saga in which a proud Scot, Drummoch (Branagh), defies a shadowy American billionaire, Peter Bergstrom (Sarsgaard), hellbent on buying up the glens.

— Max Goldbart, Deadline, 22 Oct. 2026
Travelers familiar with Scotland’s Isle of Skye may recognize this recipe for remote luxury, though rather than craggy cliffs and emerald-green glens, Noirmoutier is closer to a little slice of California.

— Laura Dannen Redman, Robb Report, 15 Oct. 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 8 Nov. 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

cockamamie

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

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

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

Popular in Wordplay

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Old-Timey Vehicles

The Words of the Week - Nov. 6

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes