ravine
Americannoun
-
ravines
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of ravine
1400–50; late Middle English < Middle French: torrent, Old French: a violent rushing; see raven 2
Explanation
In a Western, outlaws will lie in wait at the top of a ravine, or narrow valley, until they see a traveler entering at the bottom. Then, the outlaws will come pounding down the ravine's steep sides. Ravines can be lonely and violent places averse to settlement as nothing can be built along their steep sides. The word ravine itself derives from the archaic rapin, which is a violent seizure of property. During times of heavy rains and snow melt, a ravine may be filled with violent, rushing water.
Vocabulary lists containing ravine
"The Ravine," Vocabulary from the short story
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Unit 4: Powerful Openings
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"The Ravine" by Graham Salisbury
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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.
See Examples For:
Out the window, I noticed a spot in the alley where the thawing and freezing of ice had created a ravine, where car tires would get lodged and trap the driver.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026
A separate, smaller fire in a ravine near Valencia in the east meanwhile killed one person, the local authority in the affected town of Manises said on X, without giving further details.
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
Among those caught up in the fire were a British couple, who were found down a ravine, badly burned and semi-conscious, local media reported.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
“We want people to know about what goes on in Mexico,” said Héctor Flores, co-founder of Light of Hope, whose volunteers uncovered a human skull in a Zapopan ravine last week.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
When Georgie and I woke in the morning, the falling snow hung like gauze between the mouth of the cave and the ravine, blurring rocks and trees, earth and sky.
From "The Old Willis Place" by Mary Downing Hahn
In the most commanding painting of this section, Jeong Seon’s “Clearing After Rain on Mt. Inwang” from 1751, roiling clusters of dark hills are split by hidden ravines and jutting waterfalls.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026
Rubaya sits on steep hillsides carved by deep ravines with dirt roads, often impassable during the rainy season, winding between unstable slopes.
From Barron's ● Feb. 1, 2026
The area has thick forest and steep ravines.
From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2024
That was particularly threatening to people living in the steep hills and ravines around Acapulco’s bay, which are susceptible to mudslides.
From New York Times ● Oct. 25, 2023
The land suddenly dropped away, going down in shelves and ravines, and changed in color from green to brown.
From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
