scarp

[skahrp]

noun

1. a line of cliffs formed by the faulting or fracturing of the earth's crust; an escarpment.

2. Fortification.,  an escarp.

verb (used with object)

1. to form or cut into a steep slope.

scarp

/ skɑːp /

noun

1. a steep slope, esp one formed by erosion or faulting; escarpment See also cuesta

2. fortifications the side of a ditch cut nearest to and immediately below a rampart

verb

1. (tr; often passive) to wear or cut so as to form a steep slope

scarp

1. A continuous line of cliffs produced by vertical movement of the Earth's crust along a fault or by erosion. The term is often used interchangeably with escarpment but is more accurately associated with cliffs produced by faulting rather than those produced by erosional processes.

Word History and Origins

Origin of scarp¹

First recorded in 1580–90, scarp is from the Italian word scarpa a slope. See escarp

Word History and Origins

Origin of scarp¹

C16: from Italian scarpa

Example Sentences

“Landslide movement continues to manifest at the ground surface in the form of scarps, fissures, grabens/sinkholes, tensional cracking, shear zones and thrust features,” the city’s latest report said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The consensus view is that Mercury's scarps are mostly about 3 billion years old.

Read more on Salon

The Saddle Mountain quake broke the ground with a 24-foot-tall scarp that blocked a drainage and created Price Lake, drowning trees as the water rose.

Read more on Seattle Times

After 14 hours, the waves had carved a small cliff face called a scarp.

Read more on Science Magazine

Meaning, I guess, that if you survive the shaking, and can figure out how to get across Lake Washington, you could walk 15 miles or so along the wall of a freshly opened scarp.

Read more on Seattle Times

Related Words

• bluff 
• crag 
• precipice 
• wall