quarry

1
[ kwawr-ee, kwor-ee ]
See synonyms for: quarryquarriedquarrying on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural quar·ries.
  1. an excavation or pit, usually open to the air, from which building stone, slate, or the like, is obtained by cutting, blasting, etc.

  2. an abundant source or supply.

verb (used with object),quar·ried, quar·ry·ing.
  1. to obtain (stone) from or as if from a quarry.

  2. to make a quarry in.

Origin of quarry

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English noun quarrei, quarey, quar(r)i, from Medieval Latin quareia, quarrea, quareria, from Old French quarriere, from unrecorded Vulgar Latin quadrāria “place where stone is squared,” derivative of Latin quadrāre “to square”

Other words from quarry

  • quar·ri·a·ble, quar·ry·a·ble, adjective
  • un·quar·ried, adjective

Words that may be confused with quarry

Other definitions for quarry (2 of 3)

quarry2
[ kwawr-ee, kwor-ee ]

noun,plural quar·ries.
  1. an animal or bird hunted or pursued.

  2. game, especially game hunted with hounds or hawks.

  1. any object of search, pursuit, or attack.

Origin of quarry

2
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English quirre, querre, quirrei “parts of a deer given to the hounds,” from Old French cuiree, cuiriee, curee “viscera, entrails” (probably influenced by cuir “leather, hide, skin”), from Latin corium “skin, hide, leather”), from Late Latin corāta (plural) “entrails,” from cor “heart”

Other definitions for quarry (3 of 3)

quarry3
[ kwawr-ee, kwor-ee ]

noun,plural quar·ries.
  1. a square stone or tile.

Origin of quarry

3
First recorded in 1535–45; noun use of obsolete adjective quarry “square,” from Old French quarre, from Latin quadrātus quadrate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use quarry in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for quarry (1 of 3)

quarry1

/ (ˈkwɒrɪ) /


nounplural -ries
  1. an open surface excavation for the extraction of building stone, slate, marble, etc, by drilling, blasting, or cutting

  2. a copious source of something, esp information

verb-ries, -rying or -ried
  1. to extract (stone, slate, etc) from or as if from a quarry

  2. (tr) to excavate a quarry in

  1. to obtain (something, esp information) diligently and laboriously: he was quarrying away in the reference library

Origin of quarry

1
C15: from Old French quarriere, from quarre (unattested) square-shaped stone, from Latin quadrāre to make square

British Dictionary definitions for quarry (2 of 3)

quarry2

/ (ˈkwɒrɪ) /


nounplural -ries
  1. an animal, bird, or fish that is hunted, esp by other animals; prey

  2. anything pursued or hunted

Origin of quarry

2
C14 quirre entrails offered to the hounds, from Old French cuirée what is placed on the hide, from cuir hide, from Latin corium leather; probably also influenced by Old French coree entrails, from Latin cor heart

British Dictionary definitions for quarry (3 of 3)

quarry3

/ (ˈkwɒrɪ) /


nounplural -ries
  1. a square or diamond shape

  2. something having this shape

  1. another word for quarrel 2

Origin of quarry

3
C16: from Old French quarré; see quarrel ²

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