soil creep

American  

noun

Geology.

1. creep of soil on even slopes; often accelerated by spring freeze-and-thaw or general periglacial conditions.

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soil creep British  

noun

1. the gradual downhill movement, under the force of gravity, of soil and loose rock material on a slope

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Etymology

Origin of soil creep

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

A special type of soil creep is solifluction, which is the slow movement of soil lobes on low-angle slopes due to soil repeatedly freezing and thawing in high-latitude, typically sub-Arctic, Arctic, and Antarctic locations.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017