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Glite Dictionary
colluvium

colluvium

9.9
Loose soil, sand, and small rocks that gather at the base of a slope
  • noun
  • /kəˈlʌv.i.əm/
  • Specialized
: coluvión
  • The gardener discovered rich colluvium at the base of the hill, perfect for planting vegetables.

Examples

  • During the hike, we noticed that the colluvium collected at the foot of the cliffs was composed of various stones and sand.

  • Even now, these areas are mostly barren lithosols amid which granitic outcrops emerge continually, so that only in a few places does semiorganic colluvium accumulate.

    Academic text (1994)

  • After heavy rains, the colluvium near the slopes helped to improve the soil quality for the crops.

Synonyms

dirt
vscolluvium
407 1.0

Top layer of the ground made of soil and small rocks

forms at slope bases as loose material moved downhill by gravity
soil
vscolluvium
336 1.0

Top layer of the ground where plants grow

is a downslope accumulation not defined by fertility or plant growth
talus
vscolluvium
  • Specialized
1 9.3

A slope of loose rocks at the bottom of a cliff

is a mixed deposit that also contains soil and sand moved by gravity
defluvium
vscolluvium
  • Specialized
9.9

Loose soil and rock carried by water down a slope and left at the bottom

is deposited mainly by gravity rather than by flowing surface water

Surface Forms

colluvium singular
colluvia plural

Etymology

Colluvium comes from Latin parts like col- 'together' and a root meaning 'to wash', and it is like alluvium (soil washed by rivers). So colluvium is the loose soil, sand, and rock that is washed or dropped down a slope and gathers together at the base of a hill.