terreplein
Meanings
noun
- The sloping earthen embankment behind a defensive wall.
- The level platform atop a wall, typically protected by a parapet and (strictly) distinguished from the slightly higher banquette used by its defenders.
- Any level base used by artillery in the field.
- Any earthen embankment with a broad level top, such as those used for a canal elevated above a valley floor.
Pronunciation
Word forms
Etymology
Originally a borrowing of Italian terrapieno (“earth-fill(ed)”), later altered after the model of French terreplein (now terre-plein). Its former misspellings arose from confusion of the second element of the name with Italian piano or French plain, plane (“flat, level”) based on the appearance of the earth-filled central platforms of walls.
Synonyms
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.