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coprolite

American  
[kop-ruh-lahyt] / ˈkɒp rəˌlaɪt /

noun

  1. a stony mass consisting of fossilized fecal matter of animals.


coprolite British  
/ ˈkɒprəˌlaɪt, ˌkɒprəˈlɪtɪk /

noun

  1. any of various rounded stony nodules thought to be the fossilized faeces of Palaeozic-Cenozoic vertebrates

"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

coprolite Scientific  
/ kŏprə-līt′ /
  1. Fossilized excrement. Analysis of the fossilized animal and plant remains within coprolites provides important information about the diet and environment of ancient biota.


Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of coprolite

First recorded in 1820–30; copro- + -lite

Vocabulary lists containing coprolite

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.

See Examples For:

Mr Frandsen has held the record since 2015, when his coprolite collection's official count was 1,277.

From BBC Jun. 2, 2024

By rotating the coprolite in the beam, they created 3D reconstructions of the coprolite’s contents.

From Science Magazine Jun. 30, 2021

Qvarnström and his colleagues uncovered a particular dime-size coprolite in a clay pit near Ozimek, Poland.

From Scientific American Jun. 30, 2021

That preserved poop — technically termed a coprolite — could be the lumpy rock I am now holding in my hand.

From Washington Post Jun. 16, 2018

And now we are fast nearing another world, which is far younger than that coprolite bed, and has been formed under circumstances the most opposite to it. 

From Town Geology by Kingsley, Charles

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