Gulphs

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. To form deep or wide depressions in a surface
2. To create or produce large caverns or voids underground
3. To cause significant indentations in a landscape, often associated with geological features

Etymology: "Gulphs" is the plural of "gulph," an older spelling of "gulf" that appeared in English with an inserted "h." The "gulf" form is the one that survived, so "gulphs" now reads as an archaic or variant spelling rather than standard usage. Its plural sense is the one that matters here: a gulf is a deep, wide hollow or chasm, and the plural names several such depressions at once. The noun's meaning as a surface-forming verb sense ("to form deep or wide depressions") rests on the same idea of a yawning hollow.

Synonyms: gulfs, bays, inlets, estuaries