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Grottoes

 - 3 dictionary results

grot⋅to

  [grot-oh]
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–noun, plural -toes, -tos.
1. a cave or cavern.
2. an artificial cavernlike recess or structure.
Origin:
1610–20; < It grotta < VL *crupta, for L crypta subterranean passage, chamber. See crypt

Related forms:
grottoed, adjective
grot⋅to⋅like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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grot·to   (grŏt'ō)   
n.   pl. grot·toes or grot·tos

  1. A small cave or cavern.

  2. An artificial structure or excavation made to resemble a cave or cavern.


[Alteration of Italian grotta, from Vulgar Latin *grupta, from Latin crypta, vault; see crypt.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

grotto 
1617, from It. grotta, ult. from L. crypta "vault, cavern," from Gk. krypte "hidden place" (see crypt). Terminal -o may be from its being spelled that way in many translations of Dante's "Divine Comedy."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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