barranca

[ buh-rang-kuh; Spanish bahr-rahng-kah ]

/ bəˈræŋ kə; Spanish bɑrˈrɑŋ kɑ /

noun, plural bar·ran·cas [buh-rang-kuh z; Spanish bahr-rahng-kahs] /bəˈræŋ kəz; Spanish bɑrˈrɑŋ kɑs/.

a steep-walled ravine or gorge.

a gully with steep sides; arroyo.

Nearby words

Origin of barranca

1685–95; < Spanish, variant of barranco, of obscure, probably pre-Latin orig.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for barranca

It had been done in that terrible leap upon the rocky bed of the barranca.
The War Trail|Mayne Reid
We scrambled up the other side of the barranca and soon reached a small tableland on which stands the village of Chich.
A Glimpse at Guatemala|Anne Cary Maudslay
Our captors now divided themselves into two parties, and started up the barranca, taking opposite sides.
The Scalp Hunters|Mayne Reid
At sundown we reached the head of the Barranca del Oro, a vast cleft that traversed the plain leading down to the deserted mine.
The Scalp Hunters|Mayne Reid

When my eyes first rested upon the brute, he was just emerging out of the barranca at the very spot where I had climbed up myself.
The War Trail|Mayne Reid

British Dictionary definitions for barranca

barranca

barranco (bəˈræŋkəʊ)

/ (bəˈræŋkə) /

noun plural -cas or -cos

Southwestern US a ravine or precipice

Word Origin for barranca

C19: from Spanish, of uncertain origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012