riprap

UK/ˈɹɪpɹap/

nounC2Very rare — outside the 30,000 commonest English words, so you will meet it in writing rather than in speechToo rare in one of the two pools to compare — fewer than 20 uses in speech or in writing

Riprap is loose rock piled to protect a shore from waves. Lay riprap along the bank.

The gaps between the stones absorb the energy, which a solid wall would only reflect. Riprap is cheaper than any wall and needs the stone to be large enough not to move.

Definitions of riprap

1nounriprapLoose rock piled to protect a shore from waves.C2
“The riprap along that stretch held for thirty years.”

riprap is a defence.

Where it comes from

Apparently a reduplication of rap, a blow, describing the sound of loose stone.

Built from

rap · English — blow, stroke

Apparently a reduplication (with vowel dissimilation) of rap (“blow, stroke”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Rocks & Minerals

Practise this word

riprap in the wild

Coastal bulkheads are most often referred to as seawalls, bulkheading, or riprap revetments.
Bulkhead (barrier)
In 1933, more than 30,000 tons of rocks from the excavation of Radio City Music Hall were added to the riprap foundation.
Greens Ledge Light
The destruction of the Pungoteague River Light led to further efforts being made to protect screwpile lighthouses with riprap.
Pungoteague Creek Light
Pillar Point Harbor is a boat harbor created by a riprap breakwater in San Mateo County, California, immediately north of Half Moon Bay.
Pillar Point Harbor
The shore to the north of the inlet has been stabilized with riprap as has the heavily residential southern portion of Popponesset Beach.
Popponesset Bay

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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