valley

American  

[val-ee] / ˈvæl i /

noun

plural

valleys

1. an elongated depression between uplands, hills, or mountains, especially one following the course of a stream.

2. an extensive, more or less flat, and relatively low region drained by a great river system.

3. any depression or hollow resembling a valley.

4. a low point or interval in any process, representation, or situation.

5. any place, period, or situation that is filled with fear, gloom, foreboding, or the like.

   the valley of despair.

6. Architecture. a depression or angle formed by the meeting of two inclined sides of a roof.

7. the lower phase of a horizontal wave motion.

---

valley British  

/ ˈvælɪ /

noun

1. a long depression in the land surface, usually containing a river, formed by erosion or by movements in the earth's crust

2. the broad area drained by a single river system

   the Thames valley

3. any elongated depression resembling a valley

4. the junction of a roof slope with another or with a wall

5. (modifier) relating to or proceeding by way of a valley

   a valley railway

---

valley Scientific  

/ văl′ē /

1. A long, narrow region of low land between ranges of mountains, hills, or other high areas, often having a river or stream running along the bottom. Valleys are most commonly formed through the erosion of land by rivers or glaciers. They also form where large regions of land are lowered because of geological faults.

---

Other Word Forms

• intervalley noun
• valleylike adjective

Etymology

Origin of valley

1250–1300; Middle English valeie, valey < Old French valee, equivalent to val vale ( def. ) + -ee < Latin -āta, feminine of -ātus -ate ¹

Example Sentences

Each spring, hundreds of thousands of birds gather here to feed and rest before lifting north again, following migratory paths far older than the farms and highways that now define the valley.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

Estate agents in the area said the Metro upgrade to the core valley railway lines had made Cardiff "more accessible" for people who rely on public transport to commute to work.

From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra noted his family’s personal ties to the valley.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

The burst waters course through the Goma valley, drawing attention from security forces stationed at a paramilitary camp in Dzanak five miles away.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

In his hand was a bouquet: baby’s breath and a stalk or two of lily of the valley, tastefully tied up in thread.

From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck

Related Words

• basin
• canyon
• gorge
• lowland
• plain