earthwork

[ urth-wurk ]

/ ˈɜrθˌwɜrk /

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See synonyms for earthwork on Thesaurus.com

noun

excavation and piling of earth in connection with an engineering operation.

Military. a construction formed chiefly of earth for protection against enemy fire, used in both offensive and defensive operations.

an artistic work that consists of a large-scale alteration or modification of an area of land in a configuration designed by an artist or of an artist's sculptural installation, as in a museum or gallery, of soil, rock, or similar elemental materials.

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Origin of earthwork

First recorded in 1625–35; earth + work

Words nearby earthwork

earthward, earthwards, earth wave, earth wax, earthwoman, earthwork, earthworm, earthy, ear to the ground, have one's, ear trumpet, ear tuft

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use earthwork in a sentence

To me, the obvious suspect is all these artificial earthworks that are everywhere.
This wild grassland in the Amazon isn’t as untouched as it seems|Philip Kiefer|October 7, 2021|Popular-Science
The underground earthwork at the House ranch lay near the highest point of the property, overlooking the river valley.
Drones find signs of a Native American ‘Great Settlement’ beneath a Kansas pasture|Bruce Bower|September 10, 2020|Science News
The mask also points to how early Smithson came to the main motif of his most famous work, the “Spiral Jetty” earthwork from 1970.
The Spirit of Land Art|Blake Gopnik|August 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST
My words only prompt you to throw up another earthwork at the point attacked.
The Daughters of Danaus|Mona Caird

On the crest of the swell Moore had thrown up a slight earthwork, which was manned when we approached.
Famous Adventures And Prison Escapes of the Civil War|Various
This conversion of earthwork into stone in the age of Severus can be paralleled from other parts of the Roman empire.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3|Various
There seemed to be a blockhouse on shore, and a kind of earthwork, near which was a flagstaff, but no flag was exhibited.
The British Expedition to the Crimea|William Howard Russell
The principal battery consisted of a semicircular earthwork, in which were embrasures for 13 guns.
The British Expedition to the Crimea|William Howard Russell

British Dictionary definitions for earthwork

earthwork

/ (ˈɜːθˌwɜːk) /

noun

excavation of earth, as in engineering construction

a fortification made of earth

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

earthwork

Origin of earthwork

Words nearby earthwork

Words related to earthwork

How to use earthwork in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for earthwork