Meanings
talus1
talus2
plural taluses · alternative tallus
- geographyA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice.
By the time he reached the first talus slides under the tall escarpments of the Pilares the dawn was not far to come.
1994, Cormac McCarthy, The Crossing1 more example
Above here is what is known as a talus slope - sandstone that has gradually disintegrated and tumbled down to create a menacing sloping pile of loose rock.
2024 May 29, Nick Brodrick, “Between a rock and a wet place...”, in RAIL, number 1010, page 39 - architectureThe slope of an embankment wall, which is thicker at the bottom than at the top.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe bone of the ankle.
More synonyms by meaning
nounthe bone in the ankle that articulates with the leg bones to form the ankle joint
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
talus · noun
- Proto-Indo-European*teh₂g-
- Proto-Indo-European*téh₂g-s-los?
- Proto-Italic*tākslos?
- Proto-Indo-European*telh₂-
- Proto-Italic*tālos?
- Proto-Indo-European*(s)teh₂-
- Proto-Italic*tāðlo-?
- Latintālus
- Englishtalus
Borrowed from Latin tālus.
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →talus · noun
- Frenchtalus
- Frenchtalus
- Englishtalus
Borrowed from French talus.
More words from French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian сипей
- сипей (sipej)A sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Catalan talús
- talúsA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Czech osyp
- osypA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Danish ur
- urA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Irish scileach, sceallach
- scileachA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
- sceallachA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Norwegian ur
- urA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Russian о́сыпь
- о́сыпь (ósypʹ)A sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Slovak suť
- suťA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Swedish taluskon
- taluskonA sloping heap of fragments of rock lying at the foot of a precipice
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
talus. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/talus
“talus.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/talus. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “talus,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/talus.
Source: talus on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.