mesa

Everyday

1. (geography) A hill or mountain with steep sides and a large, flat top, found in dry places like the south-west USA and parts of Australia. tree →
2. (Spanish) «Mesa» means «table» in Spanish; the hill is named for its table-like shape. tree →

In the lessons

In geography lessons on landforms, mesas form when soft rock around a hard cap of rock is worn away by wind and water (erosion). A smaller one is called a «butte». Famous mesas are in Arizona, Utah and New Mexico (for example Monument Valley). Phrases: «a flat-topped mesa», «mesa and butte».

Examples

• A mesa is a hill with a flat top like a table. tree →
• We saw red mesas in the desert in Arizona. tree →
• Erosion slowly turned the plateau into mesas. tree →
• A butte is smaller and narrower than a mesa. tree →
• The old village was built on top of a mesa for safety. tree →
• «Mesa» means «table» in Spanish. tree →
• The cowboy rode past the tall mesa. tree →
• In Australia, flat-topped hills like mesas are sometimes called «jump-ups». tree →

Note

Countable: one mesa, two mesas. Pronounced «MAY-sa». A loanword from Spanish. Order by size: plateau (largest) → mesa → butte (smallest). Not a maths word.