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Recent Examples of rift valley
If the two plates keep moving apart, then eventually the Arabian Sea and rift valley will become a new ocean.
—
Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 24 Nov. 2025
The high plain ran to the rift valley and the Rio Grande, which flows all the way to Mexico.
—Michael Paterniti, Travel + Leisure, 14 Nov. 2025
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
Baringo is a county based within Kenya’s rift valley, which, according to Buret, experiences unnoticeable tectonic earth movement daily.
—Faustine Ngila, Quartz, 13 Mar. 2023
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
Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 24 Nov. 2025
The high plain ran to the rift valley and the Rio Grande, which flows all the way to Mexico.
—Michael Paterniti, Travel + Leisure, 14 Nov. 2025
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
Baringo is a county based within Kenya’s rift valley, which, according to Buret, experiences unnoticeable tectonic earth movement daily.
—Faustine Ngila, Quartz, 13 Mar. 2023
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rift valley
Noun
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Altogether, Saguaro is 92,000 acres, with mountains, canyons, 200 miles of hiking trails, and iconic cacti that can grow to be 50 feet tall.—
Graham Averill,
Outside,
23 Feb. 2026
-
The vacation spots on this list are romantic, but they’re also designed for duo travel—whether that looks like pairing up with a partner to rappel down canyons in Dominica, trying twice as many dishes on a pintxo crawl in San Sebastian, or co-marveling at South African sunsets.—
Jessica Sulima,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The gorge acts as a natural channel funneling through rain runoff often creating an intriguing mix of wildflowers.—
Roger Naylor,
AZCentral.com,
21 Feb. 2026
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Stone villages cling to hillsides above orchards while rivers slice through limestone gorges below.—
Rob Crossan,
Condé Nast Traveler,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Farther up the gulch, the water formed a pool, which gave off a rank chemical smell.—
Nick Bowlin,
ProPublica,
29 Oct. 2025
-
There were more creeks, high hills, big parks, passes, and open mountainsides with broken, timbered canyons and gulches.—
Fred C. Mercer,
Outdoor Life,
14 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
It was built between the walls of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison and has a lower volume capacity than Blue Mesa Dam, an earth-fill dam that was constructed in a lower valley.—
Logan Smith,
CBS News,
22 Feb. 2026
-
These walls block the view of the house for a six footer standing down in the valley.—
James Alexander,
Hartford Courant,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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If no alternative exists, set up camp in a valley, ravine, or other low-lying areas.—
Southern California Weather Report,
Oc Register,
18 Feb. 2026
-
If reaching a safe shelter is not possible, either crouch down in your car and cover your head, or leave your vehicle and seek refuge in a low-lying area like a ditch or ravine.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The rupture occurred near where the tunnel connects to the 15-foot-diameter penstock, sending a gully of water down both sides of the 1-mile pipeline leading to the powerhouse.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Ryan Copenhagen was descending a gully on January 26 when the metal line struck him across the neck.—
Outside,
Outside,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Tobacco parallels The Los Angeles trial centers on allegations made by a 20-year-old woman, Kaley, and her mother that four social media giants intentionally designed addictive platforms that hooked her as a child and led to mental health challenges, including anxiety and depression.—
Clare Duffy,
CNN Money,
22 Feb. 2026
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Today, Hirsch points out, depression glass is a valuable collectible, particularly in its prettiest pastel colors.—
Heather Bien,
Southern Living,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Her outfit stayed inside Browne’s gray suit vocabulary, layering a glen-check blazer with strong shoulders layered over a matching waist panel and pleated detail at the hip, finished with the brand’s red-white-blue grosgrain tab at the hem.—
Maggie Clancy,
Footwear News,
7 Feb. 2026
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This is also what allows what’s outside its doorstep to take precedence: the soul-stirring glens, spirit-rejuvenating streams, and craggy peaks of Cairngorms National Park.—
Arati Menon,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rift valley.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rift%20valley. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
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