avulsion Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun an abrupt change in the course of a stream that forms the boundary between two parcels of land resulting in the loss of part of the land of one landowner and a consequent increase in the land of another
  2. noun a forcible tearing or surgical separation of one body part from another

WordNet

A*vul"sion noun
Etymology
L. avulsio.
Definitions
  1. A tearing asunder; a forcible separation.
    The avulsion of two polished superficies. Locke.
  2. A fragment torn off. J. Barlow.
  3. (Law) The sudden removal of lands or soil from the estate of one man to that of another by an inundation or a current, or by a sudden change in the course of a river by which a part of the estate of one man is cut off and joined to the estate of another. The property in the part thus separated, or cut off, continues in the original owner. Wharton. Burrill.

Webster 1913