cataclasis

American

[kat-uh-kley-sis, kuh-tak-luh-sis] / ˌkæt əˈkleɪ sɪs, kəˈtæk lə sɪs /

noun

Petrology.

a process of deformation or metamorphism in which the grains of a rock are fractured and rotated.

cataclasis British

/ ˌkætəˈklæstɪk, ˌkætəˈkleɪsɪs /

noun

geology the deformation of rocks by crushing and shearing

"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

Other Word Forms

cataclastic adjective

Etymology

Origin of cataclasis

< Greek katáklasis refraction, equivalent to katakla-, stem of kataklân to break off, refract, break down ( kata- cata- + klân to break) + -sis -sis; compare Norwegian kataklasstruktur (1885)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023