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Glite Dictionary
🏕️ A portable shelter 🌄 A steep gully 🏘️ A Nigerian town
donga

donga

9.9
A deep gully made by water after heavy rain
  • noun
  • South African
translation icon : donga
  • The steep walls of the donga made it difficult for the animals to escape.

Examples

  • It can't be, he thought; then he once again knelt down and stared into the donga.

    Academic text (2008)

  • We found several interesting plants growing in the dry donga after the recent rain.

  • As we walked along the path, we stumbled upon a hidden donga filled with lush vegetation.

Synonyms

chine
vsdonga
  • UK
9.6

A steep narrow valley or gully that leads down to the sea

is similar but not limited to coastal locations
nullah
vsdonga
  • Indian
9.9

A steep narrow valley that is usually dry but fills with water in heavy rain

is similar but does not imply seasonal dryness

How Deep

canyon
117 2.5
to ravine
9.9
donga
  • South African
9.9
gully
27 4.7
rill
3 8.6

Surface Forms

donga singular
dongas plural

Etymology

Donga for a steep-sided gully comes from a South African word udonga meaning 'wall' or 'bank', because the gully has steep sides like walls. That is why a donga is a deep, eroded channel you must be careful near.