glacis
Americannoun
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a gentle slope.
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Fortification. a bank of earth in front of the counterscarp or covered way of a fort, having an easy slope toward the field or open country.
noun
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a slight incline; slope
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an open slope in front of a fortified place
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short for glacis plate
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of glacis
1665–75; < Middle French; akin to Old French glacier to slide; compare Latin glaciāre to make into ice; see glacé
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This particular glacis was ground, compacted limestone, which became very slick with moisture.
From Washington Times • Jun. 7, 2015
On another part of a wall, Cox was part of an excavation that uncovered a glacis, a defensive structure in early fortresses.
From Washington Times • Jun. 7, 2015
The cannons are aimed, for the moment, at cattle upon the glacis, and children batting at the sky with sticks.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
Our sergeant, with his thirty men, their guns on their shoulders, quietly reached the glacis.
From The Blockade of Phalsburg An Episode of the End of the Empire by Chatrian, Alexandre
I found them drawn off from the glacis a few hundred yards; but, oh! what a difference in their appearance now from what they were previous to the attack!
From Twenty-Five Years in the Rifle Brigade by Surtees, William
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
