A steep rock face, especially at the edge of the sea or forming one side of a gorge or river valley.
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Old Englishbefore 900 CEwell-attested
From OldEnglish clif (cliff, rock face, steep slope), from Proto-Germanic *kliban (to adhere, to stick — hence something that clings to the earth), from PIE *glei-/*gloi- (to stick, to cling), the same root that gives clay and glue. The sense development moves from sticking to the earth (a steep face of rock that cleaves to the land rather than sloping gently) to the sheer rock face itself. The related verb to cleave (to adhere, to stick close) preserves this rootdirectly
Did you know?
The common English place name element '-cliffe' or '-cliff' (as in Wycliffe, Radcliffe, Sutcliffe) originally just meant 'slope' or 'bank' — not necessarily the dramatic sheer drop we picture today. Many places named '-cliff' sit on modest hillsides.
and the way the rock face clings upright against gravity. Key roots: *glei- (Proto-Indo-European: "to stick, adhere, smear"), *klibą (Proto-Germanic: "cliff, steep rock face").