scree

Meaning

Noun

1. Loose stony debris on a slope.
2. Similar debris made up of broken building material such as bricks, concrete, etc.
3. A slope made up of loose stony debris at the base of a cliff, mountain, etc.

Verb

To traverse scree downhill.

Verb

To make a high-pitched cry like that of a hawk.

Verb

To flatten or level concrete while still wet, and remove protruding gravel and stones from the surface.

Synonyms

talus

breakout

detritus

shingle

talus cone

inbreak

debris cone

talus material

boulder

talus ruoble

Pronounced as (IPA)

/skɹiː/

Etymology

Probably a back-formation from screes, from Old Norse skriða (“landslide, landslip”); compare skríða (“to glide”) (from Proto-Germanic *skrīþaną (“to crawl; to glide; to walk”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kreyt-, *(s)ker- (“to bend, turn”)). The word is cognate with Icelandic skriða (“avalanche; landslide, landslip; steep mountain- or hillside made up of gravel and loose rocks”).