clastic
Americanadjective
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Biology. breaking up into fragments or separate portions; dividing into parts.
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pertaining to an anatomical model made up of detachable pieces.
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Geology. noting or pertaining to rock or rocks composed of fragments or particles of older rocks or previously existing solid matter; fragmental.
adjective
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(of sedimentary rock, etc) composed of fragments of pre-existing rock that have been transported some distance from their points of origin
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biology dividing into parts
a clastic cell
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able to be dismantled for study or observation
a clastic model of the brain
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of clastic
1870–75; < Greek klastós broken in pieces ( klas- variant stem of klân to break + -tos verbal adjective suffix) + -ic
Vocabulary lists containing clastic
Earth Science - Middle School
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Earth Science - High School
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Rocks and Minerals - Middle School and High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
These are mostly unmetamorphosed clastic rocks deposited in rivers and lakes during the middle Proterozoic, at around 1,400 Ma, while Laurentia was still part of the supercontinent Columbia.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
In both cases, the rocks are mostly clastic, with both terrestrial and marine deposition.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
While clastic and carbonate sediments were accumulating along the western edge of Laurentia, much of the interior of the continent was submerged under inland seas that were connected to ocean most of the time.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
It’s important not to assume that mechanical weathering leads only to clastic sedimentary rocks, while chemical weathering leads only to chemical sedimentary rocks.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
The original clastic characters of the strata are obscured and the rocks between Arrochar and Inverarnan in Glen Falloch merge into quartz-biotite gneisses and albite schists.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 8 "Dubner" to "Dyeing" by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
