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scoria

[skawr-ee-uh, skohr-]
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noun, plural sco·ri·ae [skawr-ee-ee, skohr-] /ˈskɔr iˌi, ˈskoʊr-/.
  1. Metallurgy. the refuse, dross, or slag left after melting or smelting metal; scum.
  2. Geology. a cinderlike basic cellular lava.
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Origin of scoria

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin scōria < Greek skōría, derivative of skôr dung
Related formssco·ri·a·ceous [skawr-ee-ey-shuh s, skohr-] /ˌskɔr iˈeɪ ʃəs, ˌskoʊr-/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

slagmagmabasaltlavaslacksmutembercharstokecarbonfuelcindersparkcharcoalculmscoriaashanthraciterefusetrash

Examples from the Web for scoria

Historical Examples

  • Here, Oliver, lad, look at the great pieces of scoria and pumice.

    Fire Island

    G. Manville Fenn

  • The scoria is let off occasionally, through holes made for the purpose.

  • Rabbits burrow in the heaps of scoria on the slopes of the mountains.

  • The telescope reveals a parapet of scoria on the brim, as on Teneriffe.

  • On approaching nearer the apex, the path was over cinders, fine black sand, and scoria.

British Dictionary definitions for scoria

scoria

noun plural -riae (-rɪˌiː)
  1. a rough cindery crust on top of solidified lava flows containing numerous vesicles
  2. refuse obtained from smelted ore; slag
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Derived Formsscoriaceous (ˌskɔːrɪˈeɪʃəs), adjective

Word Origin

C17: from Latin: dross, from Greek skōria, from skōr excrement
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
scoria in Science

scoria

[skôr′ē-ə]
Plural scoriae (skôr′ē-ē′)
  1. Rough, crusty, solidified lava containing numerous vesicles that originated as gas bubbles in the lava while it was still molten.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.