definitions

rock cycle

noun

Geology. a continuous process by which rocks are created, changed from one form to another, destroyed, and then formed again.

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Nearby words

rock cornish, rock crab, rock creek butte, rock cress, rock crystal, rock cycle, rock dove, rock dust, rock elm, rock falls, rock fence
Also called geological cycle.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for geological cycle (1 of 2)

geological cycle

noun

the series of events in which a rock of one type is converted to one or more other types and then back to the original typeAlso called: rock cycle

British Dictionary definitions for geological cycle (2 of 2)

rock cycle

noun

another name for geological cycle
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

Culture definitions for geological cycle

geological cycle

The continuous process in which hot, molten material coming to the surface of the Earth from the interior forms igneous rocks, which are then broken down by weathering to create soil and sedimentary rocks. These sedimentary rocks can be lifted up by the motion associated with plate tectonics, in which case they are again weathered and washed down to the sea. Alternatively, they can be buried deep within the Earth, changed into metamorphic rocks, and brought to the surface of the Earth, or buried so deeply that they are melted and become part of the magma from which igneous rocks are formed.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.