claypan

[ kley-pan ]

noun

1. hardpan ( def 1 ).
2. Australian. a shallow, normally dry depression in the ground that holds water after a heavy rain.

claypan

/ ˈkleɪˌpæn /

noun

1. a layer of stiff impervious clay situated just below the surface of the ground, which holds water after heavy rain

Word History and Origins

Origin of claypan¹

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40; clay + pan ¹

Example Sentences

And the claypan, as it’s called, has to be carefully engineered so that it will drain properly and also keep the plants submerged at the optimum level.

From Literature

A colleague had mistakenly taken them to a site they'd never visited before, a nondescript-looking claypan lost among the pale dunes in the Willandra Lakes region of far western New South Wales.

From Time Magazine Archive

Sometimes they found a sufficiency in a natural well or claypan; or again they struck for some creek towards the west or north, whose irregular curves were outlined on the plain by the gum-trees growing closely on its banks.

From Project Gutenberg

Camped on claypan with little and bad water.

From Project Gutenberg

SEE     Upfield, Arthur W.   Wings above the claypan.

From Project Gutenberg