graben

[grah-buhn]

noun

1. a portion of the earth's crust, bounded on at least two sides by faults, that has dropped downward in relation to adjacent portions.

graben

/ ˈɡrɑːbən /

noun

1. an elongated trough of land produced by subsidence of the earth's crust between two faults

graben

1. A usually elongated block of rock that is bounded by parallel geologic faults along its two longest sides, and has a lower elevation than the rock at its sides. Grabens form where rock is being pulled apart by tectonic forces. The East African Rift Valley is a graben.

Word History and Origins

Origin of graben¹

1895–1900; < German: ditch

Word History and Origins

Origin of graben¹

C19: from German, from Old High German graban to dig

Example Sentences

Scheduled to begin on Thursday night, Verdi said employees want to strike at Amazon's shipping centers in Rheinberg, Koblenz and Graben, Germany, - the company's biggest market after the United States.

From Reuters

The wide pedestrian main drag, the Graben, was empty.

From Washington Post

A pillar of stone clouds rises above the Graben, Vienna’s emblematic avenue.

From New York Times

Positioned on the Graben, a medieval pedestrian street downtown, the monument provides a grand theatrical flourish.

From Los Angeles Times

The geological term for Death Valley's type of land formation is a graben, a sunken fragment of Earth's crust.

From Fox News