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caliche
[ kuh-lee-chee ]
/ kəˈli tʃi /
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noun Geology.
a surface deposit consisting of sand or clay impregnated with crystalline salts such as sodium nitrate or sodium chloride.
a zone of calcium carbonate or other carbonates in soils of semiarid regions.
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Origin of caliche
1855–60; <Spanish: flake of lime, equivalent to cal lime (<Latin calc-;see chalk) + -iche noun suffix
Words nearby caliche
caliber, calibrate, calibration, calibre, calices, caliche, calicle, calico, calicoback, calico bass, calico bug
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use caliche in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for caliche
caliche
/ (kæˈliːtʃɪ) /
noun
Also called: calcrete a bed of sand or clay in arid regions cemented by calcium carbonate, sodium chloride, and other soluble minerals
a surface layer of soil encrusted with calcium carbonate, occurring in arid regionsAlso called: duricrust
Word Origin for caliche
C20: from American Spanish, from Latin calx lime
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 caliche
caliche
[ kə-lē′chē ]
See hardpan.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.