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porphyritic

[pawr-fuh-rit-ik]

adjective

Petrology.
  1. of, pertaining to, containing, or resembling porphyry, its texture, or its structure.



porphyritic

/ ˌpɔːfɪˈrɪtɪk /

adjective

  1. (of rocks) having large crystals in a fine groundmass of minerals

  2. consisting of porphyry

“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
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Other Word Forms

  • nonporphyritic adjective
  • pseudoporphyritic adjective
  • subporphyritic adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of porphyritic1

1375–1425; late Middle English porphiritike < Medieval Latin porphyrīticus < Greek porphyrītikós of porphyry; -ic
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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.

You can find dwarfs, hobbits, dragons and wizards in the towers created by porphyritic lava flows.

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The dark-coloured porphyritic crystals of basalts are known as basaltic hornblende.

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At Port St. Julian, the country becomes hilly, and continues so as far to the northward as latitude 44�, the rock being porphyritic.

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His marble was perhaps the porphyritic rock which it resembles when wetted by sea moisture.

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Those rocks examined microscopically consist of basalts which are often porphyritic.

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