TERMIUM Plus®

The Government of Canada’s terminology and linguistic data bank.

PONT PIERRE PRIMITIF [1 record]

Record 1 2012-03-07

English

Subject field(s)
  • Tunnels, Overpasses and Bridges
DEF

A bridge made of large slabs of stone, some built up to make rough piers and other longer ones laid on top to make the roadway.

CONT

In rocky regions stone was used for bridges. Piles of stone were placed at short intervals across the river, providing the bridge piers, and then a path from bank to bank was made by laying flat stone slabs across adjacent piers. A few stone bridges of this type, called clapper bridges, can still be seen in Dartmoor, England; however, they date only from the Middle Ages or even later.

OBS

"Clam" and "clapper" are Anglo-Saxon words denoting, respectively, timber and stepping-stones.

OBS

May also be made of wood; see "clam bridge."

Key term(s)
  • clapper

French

Domaine(s)
  • Tunnels, viaducs et ponts

Spanish

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