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stalactite
[ stuh-lak-tahyt, stal-uhk-tahyt ]
noun
- a deposit, usually of calcium carbonate, shaped like an icicle, hanging from the roof of a cave or the like, and formed by the dripping of percolating calcareous water.
stalactite
/ ˈstæləkˌtaɪt; ˌstæləkˈtɪtɪk; stəˈlæktɪˌfɔːm /
noun
- a cylindrical mass of calcium carbonate hanging from the roof of a limestone cave: formed by precipitation from continually dripping water Compare stalagmite
stalactite
/ stə-lăk′tīt′ /
- A cylindrical or conical mineral deposit projecting downward from the roof of a cave or cavern, formed by the dripping of water saturated with minerals. Stalactites form gradually as the minerals precipitate out of the saturated water. They usually consist of calcite but can also consist of other minerals.
- Compare stalagmite
Derived Forms
- stalactiform, adjective
- stalactitic, adjective
Other Words From
- stal·ac·tit·ic [stal-, uh, k-, tit, -ik], stalac·titi·cal adjective
- stalac·titi·cal·ly adverb
Word History and Origins
Origin of stalactite1
Word History and Origins
Origin of stalactite1
Compare Meanings
How does stalactite compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Example Sentences
Medieval artisans crafted some Alhambra ceilings to look like a cave’s stalactites, then gilded them with a layer of tinfoil topped by a gold-and-silver alloy.
With a bedrock of sandstone and shale, two minerals less water soluble than limestone, the area didn’t lend itself to the familiar stalactites and stalagmites of other subterranean tunnels.
Replies stack downward, leading in some cases to long, stalactite-like structures.
In this specimen the tubular cavity of the stalactite is still open.
I halted on my way to visit the curious and wonderful stalactite caverns of Adelsberg; they are like underground cathedrals.
The storeman seizes the head of one bird, wrenches hard, and off it breaks as brittle as a stalactite.
The outermost cave is 70 ft. in height and 200 in length, with massive pillars of stalactite reaching from roof to floor.
Slow water fell drop by drop from the point of the stalactite upon the point of the stalagmite.
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