‖ tapia
(ˈtɑːpɪə)
[Sp. tapia mud-wall: see Diez.]
Clay or mud puddled, rammed, and dried: used for walls. Also attrib.
| 1748 Earthquake of Peru iii. 268 The Walls are of Clay ramm'd between two Planks, which they call Tapias. 1834–47 J. S. Macaulay Field Fortif. (1851) 146 Loop⁓holes, when they can be given a regular form, as in mud or tapia walls. 1878 Hooker & Ball Marocco 322 The remains of massive walls of tapia. 1883 Sunday Mag. 689 Strengthened by an unbroken ring of solid walls built of tapia or concrete. |