lode

American  

[lohd] / loʊd /

noun

1. a veinlike deposit, usually metalliferous.

2. any body of ore set off from adjacent rock formations.

3. a rich supply or source.

4. British. a waterway or channel.

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lode British  

/ ləʊd /

noun

1. a deposit of valuable ore occurring between definite limits in the surrounding rock; vein

2. a deposit of metallic ore filling a fissure in the surrounding rock

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lode Scientific  

/ lōd /

1. A vein of mineral ore that is deposited between clearly demarcated layers of rock or that fills a fissure in a rock formation.

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Etymology

Origin of lode

before 900; Middle English; Old English lād way, course, carrying; cognate with Old Norse leith way, route, Old High German leita procession. See load, lade, lead ¹

Example Sentences

There are no mother lodes left to find.

From Barron's

As opposed to placer mines, his property holds lode mines.

From Los Angeles Times

But it could be a mother lode for small and large local news outlets, providing $500 million a year to preserve and grow local newsrooms.

From Seattle Times

But for a noir of isolation and concealment, about how the past can often feel inescapable, these shadowy dugouts — Travis’ motel, a church and one character’s lonely lair — are an atmospheric mother lode.

From Los Angeles Times

Two-thousand-five-hundred miles west of Dodger Stadium was a mother lode of Dodgers memorabilia.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• vein