noun
butte
BYOOT/bjuːt/
An isolated hill with steep sides and a flat top.
An isolated butte rises steeply above the flat desert floor.
Etymology
The older word meant a mound or knoll. In American English, that general image became a name for a conspicuous, isolated hill with steep sides.
In context
continuous heavy rainfall erodes certain section of a plateau vertically and turns them into a butte
More examples
- The butte's level summit glowed in the evening light.
- Two sandstone buttes stood beyond the dry riverbed.
- The trail circled the base of the butte.
Forms
butte · buttes
Similar words
- mesa
- A flat-topped elevation that is usually broader than a butte.