breccia

[ brech-ee-uh, bresh- ]

/ ˈbrɛtʃ i ə, ˈbrɛʃ- /

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noun Petrology.

rock composed of angular fragments of older rocks melded together.

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Origin of breccia

1765–75; <Italian <Germanic; compare Old High German brecha breaking

Words nearby breccia

breath of fresh air, breathtaking, breath test, breathy, B. Rec., breccia, brecciate, Brecht, Breckinridge, Brecknockshire, Brecksville

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use breccia in a sentence

The specimen of this breccia is attached to a plate of granular quartz, and may possibly have been part of a vein.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King
It was discovered by chance in 1858, having been until then hermetically sealed by a mass of limestone breccia.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3|Various
Lapping against it, at the mouth of the river, is a curious formation of magnesian breccia.
Summary Narrative of an Exploratory Expedition to the Sources of the Mississippi River, in 1820|Henry Rowe Schoolcraft
Below this were strata of trachitic breccia and augite; the formation was then seamy to an unknown depth.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 392, July 7, 1883|Various

What is the difference between trappean breccia and trappean conglomerate?
Geology|James Geikie

British Dictionary definitions for breccia

breccia

/ (ˈbrɛtʃɪə) /

noun

a rock consisting of angular fragments embedded in a finer matrix, formed by erosion, impact, volcanic activity, etc

Derived forms of breccia

brecciated, adjective

Word Origin for breccia

C18: from Italian, from Old High German brecha a fragment; see breach

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for breccia

breccia

[ brĕch′ē-ə, brĕch′ə, brĕsh′- ]

A rock composed of angular fragments embedded in a fine-grained matrix. Breccias form from explosive volcanic ejections, the compaction of talus, or plate tectonic processes. Breccias are different from conglomerates in that the fragments they contain are angular instead of rounded.