shale

[ sheyl ]

noun

1. a rock of fissile or laminated structure formed by the consolidation of clay or argillaceous material.

shale

/ ʃeɪl /

noun

1. a dark fine-grained laminated sedimentary rock formed by compression of successive layers of clay-rich sediment

shale

/ shāl /

1. A fine-grained sedimentary rock consisting of compacted and hardened clay, silt, or mud. Shale forms in many distinct layers and splits easily into thin sheets or slabs. It varies in color from black or gray to brown or red.

shale

1. A sedimentary rock formed from layers of clay.

Derived Forms

• ˈshaly, adjective

Other Words From

• shalelike shaley adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of shale¹

1740–50; origin uncertain; compare obsolete shale to split (said of stone), to shell, derivative of shale shell, husk, Old English scealu shell, husk; scale ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of shale¹

Old English scealu shell ; compare German Schalstein laminated limestone; see scale ¹, scale ²

Example Sentences

At the time, the area was quickly becoming a hub of shale gas extraction.

From MIT Technology Review

Some, like Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, liquidated their shale gas holdings.

From MIT Technology Review

Chevron announced in December 2019 that it would write down up to $11 billion in shale gas assets.

From MIT Technology Review

The shale gas “boom” was as ephemeral as Cruz’s presidential prospects.

From MIT Technology Review

Avoid glasslike or crystal filled stones, and don’t use slate or shale either since they are prone to exploding and breaking near heat.

From Popular-Science

And that may well be what is happening in the Barnett Shale region around, yes, Dallas and Irving.

From The Daily Beast

Thanks to the shale revolution, domestic oil production is soaring.

From The Daily Beast

Volcanoes spewed lava and ash, ocean floors were thrust upward, sand and rock and shale settled into slurry.

From The Daily Beast

Thanks to the shale revolution and new technology, locomotives could burn a lot cleaner and cheaper.

From The Daily Beast

Thanks to the shale revolution, the U.S. has abundant supplies of natural gas.

From The Daily Beast

They learned that many of the mountains were extinct volcanoes and admired the brilliant colored sandstone and shale formations.

From Project Gutenberg

The mud afterwards hardens, and becomes a kind of rock known as shale.

From Project Gutenberg

"These roads are very dusty," he remarked, wiping a splinter of fine shale from his own eyes.

From Project Gutenberg

All three were natives of the soil, and somewhat sluggish in nature, like its sticky red shale.

From Project Gutenberg

It is a dead land, mere shale and rock and crumbling earth, devoid of the riches which alone would make it habitable.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• sediment