washout

[ wosh-out, wawsh- ]

/ ˈwɒʃˌaʊt, ˈwɔʃ- /

a washing out of earth, gravel, etc., by water, as from an embankment or a roadway by heavy rain or by a flash flood.

the hole, break, or erosion produced by such a washing out.

Also wash-out. Aeronautics. a warp in an airfoil that gives a decrease in the angle of attack toward the tip. Compare washin.

rainout.

Informal. an utter failure.

Informal. a person who has failed a course of training or study: air force washouts.

Origin of washout

First recorded in 1870–75; noun use of verb phrase wash out

When the washout bowl was introduced it was considered perfection.

Elements of Plumbing |Samuel Dibble
Occasionally a "washout" would be encountered where a mountain stream had encroached on the road and washed it away altogether.

Across America by Motor-cycle |C. K. Shepherd
He knew the spring rains with their awesome powers of washout and flood.

The Heart of Unaga |Ridgwell Cullum
It was a mile or more to the washout in the road, but the excitement made him keen for the test.

The Daughter of Anderson Crow |George Barr McCutcheon

With great caution the hunters advanced to the washout the guide had mentioned.

American Boy's Life of Theodore Roosevelt |Edward Stratemeyer