the V-shape of the cross profile of a river valley in its upper course. As the river has little energy, most erosion is confined to periodic spurts when rainstorm events allow an increase in energy and thus traction and abrasion of the channel bed. The channel thus cuts vertically into the surface and the slopes are then weathered back into a V-shape.
Geography Dictionary & Glossary for Students \\ ITS Tutorial School (ITS) - Hong Kong.