as in mountain
a type of hill with a flat top and steep sides that is found in the southwestern U.S.
The otherworldly sandstone buttes of Monument Valley, Arizona are well worth a visit.
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Recent Examples of butte
Image The forest stretches as far as the eye can see, over multiple buttes that rise dome-like out of the ground.
—
Michael Hanson, New York Times, 1 May 2025
These pinnacles are surrounded by miles of windblown sand and bordered by mesas and buttes.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 21 Apr. 2025
Grab a site at the BLM’s White House Campground, which views a cluster of sand-white buttes ($12 per site, first come/first serve).
—Graham Averill, Outside Online, 19 Feb. 2025
The unusual features resemble the famed buttes and mesas of Monument Valley along the Arizona-Utah border.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN, 25 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for butte
Michael Hanson, New York Times, 1 May 2025
These pinnacles are surrounded by miles of windblown sand and bordered by mesas and buttes.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 21 Apr. 2025
Grab a site at the BLM’s White House Campground, which views a cluster of sand-white buttes ($12 per site, first come/first serve).
—Graham Averill, Outside Online, 19 Feb. 2025
The unusual features resemble the famed buttes and mesas of Monument Valley along the Arizona-Utah border.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN, 25 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for butte
Recent Examples of Synonyms for butte
Noun
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The post also includes videos of Twiggs skiing down a mountain.—
Marni Rose McFall,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Sep. 2025
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The evening after Jîna’s death, on assignment for the newspaper Ham-Mihan, my friend and colleague Elaheh Mohammadi drove eight hours overnight, through winding mountains and narrow roads, to Saqqez, Jîna’s hometown in Kurdistan.—
Fatemeh Jamalpour,
Literary Hub,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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And thanks to the towering cliffs that shield the shoreline from strong winds, the beaches often stay warm even as the air cools.—
Stacey Leasca,
Travel + Leisure,
14 Sep. 2025
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These boulders, ranging in size from several meters to hundreds of meters and weighing up to a few tons, occasionally tumble down cliffs and crater walls, leaving bright tracks of disturbed lunar dust behind.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Meanwhile, the outdoor plaza, itself — elevated from the street some 30 feet at its south end, like a concrete mesa or pillbox — had essentially become a city block of dead space, each year hosting one giant event, the KC Fiesta Hispana, but little else.—
Eric Adler,
Kansas City Star,
21 Aug. 2025
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Scenic drive through Monument Valley Located in northern Arizona, Monument Valley is a collection of crimson and orange mesas and sandstone buttes maintained by Navajo Nation Parks and Recreation.—
Olivia Rose,
AZCentral.com,
18 Aug. 2025
Noun
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La Gritona has just one expression, perfected to an art form with agave aged 8-10 years in the highlands of Jalisco.—
Carley Rojas Ávila,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
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See it The mummies were created by the Dani and Pumo people who live in the highlands of the Indonesia side of Papua, according to the study.—
Irene Wright,
Miami Herald,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Denise’s family was out on a foothill in a large, modern ranch house.—
Rachel Kushner,
New Yorker,
14 Sep. 2025
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The Shooting The shooting began shortly after 12:30 p.m. at Evergreen High School, about 30 miles west of Denver in the foothills of Jefferson County.—
Robert Alexander,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Cashiers, North Carolina Located in western North Carolina's Jackson County, high on a plateau in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Cashiers is a quiet village of fewer than 1,000 residents.—
Patricia Doherty,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Sep. 2025
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The iPhone 17 Pro has a large rectangular plateau to contain its three main cameras.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
12 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Butte.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/butte. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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