Thread: how is called this phenomenon

I believe landslide is the correct term. ("Dispatched" is only used when a group of things, or people, are sent to do something). Landslide is still a newer word, so it's still thought of as two words, unlike a word like disdain (Which I recently realized comes from dis- and deign, a word 100% unused today). You might even see someone write "land slide" with a space. When I hear the word, I think more of a steep hill, where the top layer of sediment/rock gets loosened and rolls down. If that happened right under a road, that's probably what you'd get.

Originally Posted by xXHoax

When I hear the word, I think more of a steep hill, where the top layer of sediment/rock gets loosened and rolls down.

I want to note that in russian term "оползень" assumes that there is no significant "rolling movement". It is derived from word "ползти" (to crawl) and it is something like "crawler". Main mass of "оползень" moves vertically and horizontally down the slope, but do not rolls.