Valleys

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈvæliz/

Definitions

1. A geographical feature defined by a depressed area between elevated landforms that often contains rivers, serves as fertile land, and may be shaped by erosion over time
2. An expanse of land lying lower than the hills or mountains surrounding it often with a river running through it
3. A stretch of terrain nestled between higher elevations where water may collect and soil tends to be rich

Etymology: Valleys is simply the plural of "valley," so the story belongs to the singular noun. The English word came into Middle English from Anglo-Norman "valey" and Old French "valee," the same word that survives in modern French as "vallée." Those French forms trace back to Latin "vallēs" or "vallis," meaning a low ground between hills. English already had its own words for this landform. The native "dene" and "dale," from Old English "dæl," were pushed aside by the French-derived "valley," though "dale" survives in place names and in poetry. "Valley" also has a doublet pair in "vlei" and "vly," which come from Dutch and Afrikaans and mean a marshy hollow or low-lying wet ground, showing the same Latin root arriving in English by a different route.

Synonyms: dales, gorges, lowlands

Antonyms: mountains, hills