n. 1. The depression surrounding a salt marsh or lake, especially in North Africa. 2. The bed of a dried salt marsh. [French, from Arabic šaṭṭ, bank, coast, from šaṭṭa, to exceed, deviate; see śṭṭ in the Appendix of Semitic roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.