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rock cliff noun A large overhang of rock that creates a shallow cave or sheltered area underneath. [DARE labels this term “chiefly southern Appalachians”]

1913 Kephart Our Sthn High 285-86 Pleonasms are abundant ... Everywhere in the mountains we hear of biscuit-bread, ham-meat, rifle-gun, rock-clift. 1936 LAMSAS (Madison Co NC, Swain Co NC). 1939 Hall Coll (Bryson City NC) He come across a big rock clift and his dog got to barkin’ into it. Ibid. (Nine Mile TN) We hit out down on what was called the Antony Ridge. We struck a big bear there, and we trailed him around, jumped him under some rock cliffs. 1975 GSMNP-59:9 You just had to plant your corn and stuff sort of between the trees and the logs and rock cliffs and what have you. 1989 Matewan OHP-45 My daddy moved in onto that rock clift.