xenomorphic

American

[zen-uh-mawr-fik, zee-nuh-] / ˌzɛn əˈmɔr fɪk, ˌzi nə- /

adjective

Petrography. Also noting or pertaining to a mineral grain that does not have its characteristic crystalline form but has a form impressed on it by surrounding grains; anhedral.
in an unusual form; having a strange form.

xenomorphic British

/ ˌzɛnəˈmɔːfɪk /

adjective

(of a mineral constituent of an igneous rock) not having its characteristic crystal shape because of deforming pressure from adjacent minerals

"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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

xenomorphically

adverb

Etymology

Origin of xenomorphic

First recorded in 1885–90; xeno- + -morphic

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023