cirque

American  

[surk] / sɜrk /

noun

1. circle; ring.

2. a bowl-shaped, steep-walled mountain basin carved by glaciation, often containing a small, round lake.

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cirque British  

/ sɜːk /

noun

1. Also called: corrie.   cwm.  a semicircular or crescent-shaped basin with steep sides and a gently sloping floor formed in mountainous regions by the erosive action of a glacier

2. archaeol an obsolete term for circle

3. poetic a circle, circlet, or ring

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cirque Scientific  

/ sûrk /

1. A steep, amphitheatre-shaped hollow occurring at the upper end of a mountain valley, especially one forming the head of a glacier or stream. Cirques are formed by the erosive activity of glaciers and often contain a small lake.

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Etymology

Origin of cirque

1595–1605; < French < Latin circus; see circus

Explanation

A cirque is a bowl-shaped indentation carved into the side or top of a mountain by a glacier. In warmer conditions, cirques gradually fill with water to form small, deep lakes called tarns. A cirque can also be called a corrie. North America has several of these steep-sided natural basins, including the Iceberg Cirque in Glacier National Park and Cirque of the Towers in Wyoming. The rounded shape of a cirque is often described as resembling an amphitheater or an armchair, with one lower edge. Cirques are carved out of the top or side of a mountain by glacial ice, which slowly moves, carving away the bedrock. Cirque means "circle" in French.

Related Words

• ring
• sphere