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definitions

solum

[soh-luh m]
noun, plural so·la [soh-luh] /ˈsoʊ lə/, so·lums.
  1. the upper part of the soil profile, which is influenced by plant roots; the A horizon and the B horizon.

Origin of solum

1820–30; < Latin: base, bottom; see sole2
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for solum

Historical Examples of solum

  • For the corruption, compare the common misreading of locum for solum.

  • This note I have found, says Sanudo, solum in one chronicle, yet it was the truth.

  • I gin mars jedge my solum wurd dat I wudn't woice dat diffikilt twixt me und him to man nur cattle beastis nudder.

    The Broken Sword

    Dennison Worthington

  • He was therefore obliged to return to Solum, promising himself a speedy solution of the mystery.

    Norway

    Beatrix Jungman

  • Solum in clis deum putabant solem, says Philobibliensis, in his interpretation of Sanchoniathon.

British Dictionary definitions for solum

solum

noun plural -lums or -la (-lə)
  1. the upper layers of the soil profile, affected by climate and vegetation

Word Origin for solum

C19: New Latin from Latin: the ground
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
Word Origin and History for solum
n.

Latin, "ground, soil," of unknown origin.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
solum in Science

solum

[sō′ləm]
Plural sola solums
  1. The upper layers of a soil profile in which soil formation occurs. The A and B horizons in an ABC soil are part of the solum.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.