glacis
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gla·cis
(glă-sē′, glăs′ē, glā′sĭs)n. pl. glacis
1.
a. A gentle slope; an incline.
b. A slope extending down from a fortification.
2. A neutral area separating conflicting forces.
[French, from Old French, from glacer, to slide, from glace, ice, from Vulgar Latin *glacia, from Latin glaciēs; see gel- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
glacis
(ˈɡlæsɪs; ˈɡlæsɪ; ˈɡleɪ-)n, pl -ises or -is (-iːz; -ɪz)
1. a slight incline; slope
2. (Fortifications) an open slope in front of a fortified place
3. (Military) short for glacis plate
[C17: from French, from Old French glacier to freeze, slip, from Latin glaciāre, from glaciēs ice]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
gla•cis
(ˈgleɪ sɪs, ˈglæs ɪs)n., pl. gla•cis (ˈgleɪ siz, -sɪz, ˈglæs iz, -ɪz)
gla•cis•es.
1. a gentle slope.
2. a gradually sloping embankment of earth dug from the ditch of a fortification, leading downward from the counterscarp toward open country.
[1665–75; < Middle French; akin to Old French glacier to slide; compare Latin glacāre to make into ice; see glacé]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.