berm

The definition of a berm is a piece of land that is flat and narrow and typically beside a body of water, or a man-made hill or dike.

(noun)

An example of a berm is a strip of flat land on which you can sit next to a river.
An example of a berm are the trenches dug and used by the military in World War II.

See berm in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

a ledge or space between the ditch and parapet in a fortification
also sp. berme
☆ Dialectal the shoulder of a road
a narrow ledge or path as at the top or bottom of a slope, or along a beach
a wall or mound of earth

Origin: Fr berme & Du berm < MDu baerm: for IE base see broom

See berm in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

a. A narrow ledge or shelf, as along the top or bottom of a slope.
b. Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, & West Virginia The shoulder of a road.
c. A raised bank or path, especially the bank of a canal opposite the towpath.
A nearly horizontal or landward-sloping portion of a beach, formed by the deposition of sediment by storm waves.
A mound or bank of earth, used especially as a barrier or to provide insulation.
The flat space between the edge of a ditch and the base of a fortification.

transitive verb bermed, berm·ing, berms

To provide with a berm or berms.

Origin:

Origin: French berme

Origin: , from Dutch berm

Origin: , from Middle Dutch bǽrm, berme

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