cirque
/səːk
/noun
1 Geology A half-open steep-sided hollow at the head of a valley or on a mountainside, formed by glacial erosion. Also called corrie or cwm.The fourth and fifth landscape types are alpine landscapes, consisting of branching networks of troughs separated by ridges; and cirque landscapes, in which separate cirques are set in an upland massif....
- The cirque valley, which is heavily timbered, is deeply dissected by Portland Creek and its tributaries.
- Sitting within a glacial cirque, the 17-room chalet has sweeping vistas of teal Lake McDonald - and the occasional mountain goat.
2 literary A ring, circlet, or circle.The decoration of metal cirques and a network of patchwork cloth highlight extremely simple frocks to show off the figure.
Origin
Late 17th century (in sense 2): from French, from Latin circus.
Rhymes
- unanimousness
- unannounced
- unanswerability
- unanswerable
- unanswerableness
- unanswerably
- unanswered
- unanticipated
- unapologetic
- unapologetically
- unapparent
- unappealable
- unappealing
- unappealingly
- unappeasable
- unappeased
- unappetising
- unappetizing
- unappetizingly
- unapplied
- unappreciated
- unappreciative
- unapprehended
- unapproachability
- unapproachable