lopolith

[ lop-uh-lith ]

/ ˈlɒp ə lɪθ /

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noun Geology.

a mass of igneous rock similar to a laccolith but concave downward rather than upward.

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Origin of lopolith

1915–20; <Greek lop(ós) shell, husk + -o--o- + -lith

Words nearby lopolith

lopho-, lophobranch, lophodont, lophophore, Lop Nur, lopolith, lopper, lopping shears, loppy, lopseed, lopsided

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

British Dictionary definitions for lopolith

lopolith

/ (ˈlɒpəlɪθ) /

noun

a saucer- or lens-shaped body of intrusive igneous rock, formed by the penetration of magma between the beds or layers of existing rock and subsequent subsidence beneath the intrusionCompare laccolith

Word Origin for lopolith

C20: from Greek lopas dish + -lith

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

Scientific definitions for lopolith

lopolith

[ lŏp′ə-lĭth ]

A large, bowl-shaped body of igneous rock intruded between layers of sedimentary rock. Lopoliths are usually connected to a dike and are typically tens of kilometers thick and hundreds of kilometers wide.