counterscarp

[ koun-ter-skahrp ]

/ ˈkaʊn tərˌskɑrp /

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noun Fortification.

the exterior slope or wall of the ditch of a fort, supporting the covered way.

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Origin of counterscarp

1565–75; counter- + scarp (modeled on Italian contrascarpa ); replacing counterscarfe, with scarfe obsolete variant of scarp

Words nearby counterscarp

counterreformation, counterreply, counterrevolution, counterrevolutionary, counterrotating, counterscarp, countershading, countershaft, countersign, countersignature, countersink

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use counterscarp in a sentence

They consisted of a trench seven feet deep; the bottom, from scarp to counterscarp, six feet broad; the top thirteen feet broad.
The British Expedition to the Crimea|William Howard Russell
Ravelin, rav′lin, n. a detached work with two embankments raised before the counterscarp.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R)|Various
At our feet the counterscarp which stayed the earth on the enemys side from filling up the moat.
The Walls of Constantinople|Bernard Granville Baker
The situation of the chapel prompted us to look over the ground for traces of a lunette bastion on the counterscarp.
Riviera Towns|Herbert Adams Gibbons

This arrangement is frequently placed at the foot of the counterscarp.
Elements of Military Art and Science|Henry Wager Halleck

British Dictionary definitions for counterscarp

counterscarp

/ (ˈkaʊntəˌskɑːp) /

noun

fortifications the outer side of the ditch of a fortCompare escarp (def. 1)

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