unconformity
Americannoun
-
lack of conformity; incongruity; inconsistency.
-
Geology.
-
a discontinuity in rock sequence indicating interruption of sedimentation, commonly accompanied by erosion of rocks below the break.
-
the interface between such strata.
-
noun
-
lack of conformity
-
the contact surface between younger and older rocks representing a discontinuity in the geological record. Most commonly it represents an erosional surface
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of unconformity
First recorded in 1590–1600; un- 1 + conformity
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.
See Examples For:
It echoes James Playfair’s description of the “abyss of time” he glimpsed while viewing a strata unconformity at Siccar Point in 1788, when geology was first emerging as a science.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 20, 2019
This unconformity represents a time where erosive processes took over after millions of years when the lake had finally dried up - to form a new land surface.
From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2018
She’s revising a manuscript describing an unconformity in the sedimentary layers of Mount Sharp, within the Gale crater, a record of the alternating wet-dry cycles on the planet.
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 29, 2017
Later, horizontal strata were deposited on top of the tilted strata creating an angular unconformity.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2017
The English Bunter rests with a slight unconformity upon the older formations.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 4 "Bulgaria" to "Calgary" by Various
There are three types of unconformities, nonconformity, disconformity, and angular unconformity.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2017
Disconformities are unconformities that occur between parallel layers of strata indicating either a period of no deposition or erosion.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2017
Gaps in the geological record are represented by various types of unconformities.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
Recognizing unconformities is important for understanding time relationships in sedimentary sequences.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
Pre-Cambrian time probably was longer than all later geological time down to the present, as we may infer from the vast thicknesses of its rocks and the unconformities which part them.
From The Elements of Geology by Norton, William Harmon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
