scree

Plural: screes

Noun

A mass of loose rocks or rubble at the base of a cliff.
a sloping mass of loose rocks at the base of a cliff
Loose stony debris on a slope.
Similar debris made up of broken building material such as bricks, concrete, etc.
A slope made up of scree at the base of a cliff, mountain, etc.
A harsh, high-pitched sound or cry (as of a hawk).
A coarse sieve.

Verb

To traverse scree downhill.
To make a high-pitched cry like that of a hawk.
To flatten or level concrete while still wet, and remove protruding gravel and stones from the surface.

Examples

Finding a high-scoring word in Scrabble can feel like sifting through a SCREE of low-value tiles.

Origin / Etymology

Probably a back-formation from screes, from Old Norse skriða (“landslide, landslip”); compare skríða (“to glide”) (from Proto-Germanic *skrīþaną (“to crawl; to glide; to walk”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kreyt-, *(s)ker- (“to bend, turn”)). The word is cognate with Icelandic skriða (“avalanche; landslide, landslip; steep mountain- or hillside made up of gravel and loose rocks”).

Synonyms

talus

Scrabble Score: 7

scree: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
scree: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
scree: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 8

scree: valid Words With Friends Word