continental rift

American  

noun

1. Geology. a fault or graben affecting a large part or all of a continent and associated with a thinning of the lithosphere due to forces resulting from the movement of tectonic plates.

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continental rift Scientific  

1. A long, narrow fissure in the Earth marking a zone of the lithosphere that has become thinner due to extensional forces associated with plate tectonics. Continental rifts are thousands of kilometers in length and hundreds of kilometers in width, and they are associated with normal faults and with grabens.

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Example Sentences

Because the Turkana Rift is the first known active continental rift currently undergoing necking, it offers scientists a rare chance to study this crucial stage of tectonic evolution.

From Science Daily • Apr. 25, 2026

There are two types of divergent boundaries, categorized by where they occur: continental rift zones and mid-ocean ridges.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017

What is the likely relationship between mantle plumes and the development of a continental rift?

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015