earthwork

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a structure made from piled or shaped earth, especially an embankment or defensive rampart

   The soldiers sheltered behind an ancient earthwork.

2. 2
   noun

   construction work involving the excavation, movement, or shaping of soil

   The road project began with months of earthwork.

An English compound of earth and work, recorded from the seventeenth century. It first named structures formed from soil and later also the engineering work required to move and shape earth.

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