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mudslide

/ˈmʌdˌslaɪd/
/ˈmʌdslaɪd/
IPA guide

Other forms: mudslides

When dirt, rocks, and water flow down the side of a mountain, it's called a mudslide. Heavy rain and melting snow can both cause mudslides.

Another name for a mudslide is a debris flow. It's a fast-moving type of landslide that's made at least partly of mud, which gives the phenomenon its name. Mudslides often happen after natural disasters (like earthquakes), and hillsides that have been burned by wildfires or developed by people are more vulnerable. The effects of mudslides include impassable roads, broken pipes and cables that cause water and power outages, and even homes buried under mud.

Definitions of mudslide
  1. noun
    a rapid downward flow of soft, wet earth from a slope
    see moresee less
    type of:
    landslide, landslip
    a slide of a large mass of dirt and rock down a mountain or cliff
  2. noun
    an overwhelming or decisive victory
Pronunciation
US
/ˈmʌdˌslaɪd/
UK
/ˈmʌdslaɪd/
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