subduction

[ suh b-duhk-shuh n ]
/ səbˈdʌk ʃən /

noun

an act or instance of subducting; subtraction or withdrawal.
Geology. the process by which collision of the earth's crustal plates results in one plate's being drawn down or overridden by another, localized along the juncture (subduction zone) of two plates.

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Origin of subduction

1570–80; < Latin subductiōn-, stem of subductiō pulling up, computation; see subduct, -ion

Words nearby subduction

subdivide, subdivision, subdominant, subdual, subduct, subduction, subduction zone, subdue, subdued, subdural, subdural hemorrhage
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for subduction zone (1 of 2)

subduction zone

noun

geology a long narrow, often arcuate, zone along which subduction takes place

British Dictionary definitions for subduction zone (2 of 2)

subduction
/ (səbˈdʌkʃən) /

noun

the act of subducting, esp of turning the eye downwards
geology the process of one tectonic plate sliding under another, resulting in tensions and faulting in the earth's crust, with earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
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 subduction zone (1 of 2)

subduction zone

A convergent plate boundary where one plate subducts beneath the other, usually because it is denser. The western coast of South America is roughly coincident with a subduction zone in which a plate consisting of ocean floor is subducting beneath the continental mass of South America.

Scientific definitions for subduction zone (2 of 2)

subduction
[ səb-dŭk′shən ]

A geologic process in which one edge of one lithospheric plate is forced below the edge of another. The denser of the two plates sinks beneath the other. As it descends, the plate often generates seismic and volcanic activity (from melting and upward migration of magma) in the overriding plate. Compare obduction.

Other words from subduction

subduct verb
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.