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cliff

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cliff

[klif]
–noun
a high steep face of a rock.

Origin:
bef. 900; ME clif, OE, c. D, LG, ON klif


clifflike, adjective


bluff, promontory, ledge, crag.

Cliff

[klif]
–noun
a male given name, form of Clifford.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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cliff   (klĭf)   
n.  A high, steep, or overhanging face of rock.

[Middle English clif, from Old English.]
cliff'y adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

cliff 
O.E. clif, from P.Gmc. *kliban, perhaps from PIE base *gleibh- "to adhere, be attached." Cliffhanger "suspenseful situation" first recorded 1937.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

cliff

steep slope of earth materials, usually a rock face, that is nearly vertical and may be overhanging. Structural cliffs may form as the result of fault displacement or the resistance of a cap rock to uniform downcutting. Erosional cliffs form along shorelines or valley walls where the most extensive erosion takes place at the base of the slope. Because of their greater gradient, cliffs are subjected to greater erosive action and tend to retreat more rapidly than other slopes.

Learn more about cliff with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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