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mound

An artificial hill or elevation of earth; a raised bank; an embarkment thrown up for defense; a bulwark; a rampart; also, a natural elevation appearing as if thrown up artificially; a regular and isolated hill, hillock, or knoll. To thrid the thickets or to leap the mounds. (Dryden) Mound bird.

(Science: zoology) Any one of the megapodes. Shell mound, a mound of refuse shells, collected by aborigines who subsisted largely on shellfish. See Midden, and kitchen middens.

Origin: OE. Mound, mund, protection, AS. Mund protection, hand; akin to OHG. Munt, Icel. Mund hand, and prob. To L. Manus. See Manual.