gabion

noun

ga·​bi·​on ˈgā-bē-ən How to pronounce gabion (audio) ˈga- How to pronounce gabion (audio)
: a basket or cage filled with earth or rocks and used especially in building a support or abutment

Examples of gabion in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Opt for sustainable materials like gabions (cages filled with rocks) or interlocking permeable blocks to hold back soil while allowing water to seep through. Kristin Guy, Sunset Magazine, 31 Oct. 2024 Johanna Blake, a U.S. Geological Survey researcher at the New Mexico Water Science Center, sent The Washington Post photos of the rocky barriers — gabions — that now stretch along the river bed. Aaron Steckelberg, Washington Post, 29 July 2024 The Coast Guard placed riprap and dozens of gabions along the ledges to absorb the force of the breakers, but, as ocean levels have risen and nor’easters intensified, a fault line between the tower’s foot and the foghorn’s generator house has widened. Dorothy Wickenden, The New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2023 The developer also committed to implementing ways to mitigate impacts on wildlife, including using low-level pedestrian lighting, maximizing rain harvesting, implementing renewable energy sources, using gabions to protect the banks of the Pima Wash and revegetating the wash. Sarah Lapidus, The Arizona Republic, 16 July 2023 These gabion walls will support the berms of soil along the approaches and won’t be visible to the wildlife, who will only see what appears to be a continuation of the hill, Rock said. Jeanette Marantos, Los Angeles Times, 21 June 2023 Additionally, a hike and bike trail with a pedestrian bridge will be installed along the top of the gabion wall as part of the Chisholm Trail expansion along Spring Creek. Dallas News, 22 Nov. 2022 The work will include creek stabilization and erosion protection measures through the installation of gabion basket tieback wall of approximately 500 feet in length. Dallas News, 22 Nov. 2022 The park has gabion baskets — cage-like structures filled with rocks — down by the beach to prevent erosion, but those are failing. Emma Keith, Detroit Free Press, 11 Sep. 2019

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French, borrowed from Italian gabbione, from gabbia "cage" (going back to Latin cavea) + -one, augmentative suffix (going back to Latin -ō, -ōn-, suffix of nouns denoting persons with a prominent feature) — more at cage entry 1

First Known Use

1544, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of gabion was in 1544

Dictionary Entries Near gabion

Cite this Entry

“Gabion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gabion. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

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