embankment

American  

[em-bangk-muhnt] / ɛmˈbæŋk mənt /

noun

1. a bank, mound, dike, or the like, raised to hold back water, carry a roadway, etc.

2. the action of embanking.

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embankment British  

/ ɪmˈbæŋkmənt /

noun

1. a man-made ridge of earth or stone that carries a road or railway or confines a waterway See also levee 1

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Etymology

Origin of embankment

First recorded in 1780–90; embank + -ment

Example Sentences

An official report found an embankment constructed in 1968 had collapsed, despite the Environment Agency being aware of its vulnerabilities.

From BBC

They located the woman about 75 feet down a steep embankment.

From Los Angeles Times

They walked along the granite embankments of the Neva, past the magnificent Admiralty building and its proud white columns, its countless statues and friezes depicting figures from myths and ancient times.

From Literature

They then dropped it out the window, carried it across the river bridge in a wheelbarrow and fled in a car parked near the embankment.

From The Wall Street Journal

Other wider sections of the Radical Road would have a sloped earth embankment built to catch any rockfall.

From BBC

Related Words

• hill