Rockfalls

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A geological event where loose rock fragments fall due to gravity, causing potential hazards in mountainous or rocky regions
2. Instances in which accumulated rocks give way and tumble from a slope, often resulting in landslides or debris flows
3. Occurrences of rock material collapsing from steep terrain, inducing risks to structures and ecosystems below

Etymology: "Rockfalls" is the plural of "rockfall", a compound of "rock" and "fall" that describes the sudden tumbling of loose stone down a slope. Each part keeps its ordinary sense: "rock" is the solid mineral mass of the earth's crust, and "fall" is the descent of something under gravity. Put together, the compound names the event itself, so a rockfall is simply a rock falling. The plural adds an -s to mark more than one such event, which is how geologists and road engineers usually refer to them, counting separate incidents along a mountain pass or a cliff face. Because the compound is transparent, its meaning has changed little from its components, and the hazard sense in the definition comes from the situations where such falls happen rather than from any shift in the word.

Synonyms: landslides, avalanches