escarpment

/ɪˈskɑːpmənt/ (bre, ipa) · /ɪˈskɑːrpmənt/ (ame, ipa) · /i-ˈskärp-mənt/ (ame, mw)

escarpment — noun

  • escarpmentsingular
  • escarpmentsplural

1. a long, steep rock face or slope at the side of raised land, where the ground ab

1.名詞C1
釋義

a long, steep rock face or slope at the side of raised land, where the ground above ends much higher than the land below

例句

From the lookout, Bao pointed to the escarpment above the winding river.

pointed to the escarpment above a land feature

A narrow road winds along the escarpment before dropping into the valley.

along the escarpment for route position

同義詞
  • cliff

    more general and often more vertical, without suggesting a long raised edge

  • bluff

    usually a steep bank above a river or the sea, often shorter in extent

  • ridge

    focuses on the raised line of land itself, not the steep drop from it

反義詞
  • plain

    a broad flat area without a sharp drop

  • lowland

    the lower, flatter ground below higher land

文法句型

an/the + escarpment

top/base of the escarpment

along the escarpment

用法筆記

Usually describes a prominent drop in the landscape, not a small bank beside a path or building. It often appears in geography or travel writing about a high area with a sharp edge.

常見錯誤

❌The children slid down the escarpment in the playground.
✅The children slid down the steep slope in the playground.
💡escarpment is used for a large landform, not an ordinary play slope.
❌There is an escarpment behind the garden shed.
✅There is a steep bank behind the garden shed.
💡an escarpment is usually a long, prominent drop in the wider landscape.

2. a steep man-made slope placed before a fort or defensive wall to make attack mor

2.名詞C2
釋義

a steep man-made slope placed before a fort or defensive wall to make attack more difficult

例句

The old fort's escarpment made it hard for attackers to climb.

escarpment as a defensive slope before a fort

Workers repaired the stone escarpment in front of the outer wall.

同義詞
  • scarp

    a shorter technical term used in fortification and geology

  • defensive slope

    a plain-English description rather than a fixed technical term

文法句型

the escarpment in front of + fortification

base of the escarpment

repair/build the escarpment

用法筆記

This is a technical military sense. It names the steep defensive slope itself, not the wall, tower, or gate above it.

常見錯誤

❌The soldiers hid behind the escarpment of the gate.
✅The soldiers hid behind the wall near the gate.
💡escarpment names the steep defensive slope, not the gate or wall itself.