scree

Meanings

Noun

• Loose stony debris on a slope.
• Similar debris made up of broken building material such as bricks, concrete, etc.
• A slope made up of loose stony debris at the base of a cliff, mountain, etc.
• A harsh, high-pitched sound or cry (as of a hawk).
• A coarse sieve.

Verb

• To traverse scree downhill.
• To make a high-pitched cry like that of a hawk.
• To flatten or level concrete while still wet, and remove protruding gravel and stones from the surface.

Origin

• Probably a , from Old Norse skriða ("landslide, landslip"); compare skríða (from Proto-Germanic *skrīþaną ("to crawl; to glide; to walk"), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kreyt-, *(s)ker-). The word is cognate with Icelandic skriða ("avalanche; landslide, landslip; steep mountain- or hillside made up of gravel and loose rocks").
• onomatopoeic.
• A variant of screed.
• Apparently from screen.