rockfall

[ rok-fawl ]

noun

1. an act or instance of the falling of rock, as in a cave-in or an avalanche.
2. a mass of rocks rock that have fallen: fall:

   to be trapped under a rockfall.

Word History and Origins

Origin of rockfall¹

First recorded in 1920–25; rock ¹ + fall

Example Sentences

A house has been left teetering close to the edge of a crumbling cliff following significant rockfall along the Jurassic Coast.

From BBC

Drone photographer James Loveridge shared images on social media, showing the dramatic rockfall between Sidmouth and Ladram Bay.

From BBC

Officials have been working to restore access to the area using just the northbound lane, as it wasn’t damaged when the rockfall severely damaged the southbound lane.

From Los Angeles Times

The head had been crushed, possibly by rockfall, relatively soon after death -- after the brain decomposed but before the cranium filled with dirt -- and then compacted further by tens of thousands of years of sediment.

From Science Daily

Federal geologists blame the latest collapse of Highway 1 in Big Sur on a relatively common rockfall caused by weather, waves and gravity that eventually cracked the steep cliffside beneath the roadway, according to a new analysis by the U.S.

From Los Angeles Times