pothole
n. countablen. a large hole in the ground, especially one that is deep and dangerous. You often see these on roads after heavy rain.
n. a large, deep hole in the ground, typically caused by the erosion of underlying rock or the collapse of a cave. Often used in the context of road maintenance or geological instability.
The car hit a deep pothole and damaged the wheel.
Heavy rainfall this winter has created several dangerous potholes on the main road into the city.
The survey revealed that the ancient aqueduct had collapsed into a massive pothole, forcing the engineers to reroute the water supply through a series of temporary channels.
From dialectal pot (“pit, hollow, cavity”) + hole. The "cave" senses, attested since at least 1809 (as pot-hole), may be from Middle English pot, potte (“a deep hole for a mine, or from peat-digging”), of uncertain origin; perhaps related to English pit, pote, or pot. Compare Scots pott, patt (“a pit dug in the ground; coalpit”).
From pot + hole. Attested since at least 1811 (also as pot-hole), possibly continuing Middle English *pothol (attested in the plural, potholys).