moraine
Use Moraine in a sentence
noun
1.
a ridge, mound, or irregular mass of unstratified glacial drift, chiefly boulders, gravel, sand, and clay.
2.
a deposit of such material left on the ground by a glacier.
Origin:
1780–90; < French < Savoyard dialect morêna rise in the ground along the lower edge of a sloping field, equivalent to mour(o) mound, accumulation of earth (< *murr- mound, elevation, apparently pre-Latin) + -ena suffix of landforms, probably of pre-Latin orig.; compare Upper Italian (Piedmont) morena heap of organic detritus, Spanish moreña heap of stones, moraine
1780–90; < French < Savoyard dialect morêna rise in the ground along the lower edge of a sloping field, equivalent to mour(o) mound, accumulation of earth (< *murr- mound, elevation, apparently pre-Latin) + -ena suffix of landforms, probably of pre-Latin orig.; compare Upper Italian (Piedmont) morena heap of organic detritus, Spanish moreña heap of stones, moraine
Related forms
mo·rain·al, mo·rain·ic, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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|
Link To moraine
00:10
Moraine
is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
moraine (mɒˈreɪn) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| a mass of debris, carried by glaciers and forming ridges and mounds when deposited | |
| [C18: from French, from Savoy dialect morena, of obscure origin] | |
| mo'rainal | |
| —adj | |
| mo'rainic | |
| —adj | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
moraine
"ridge of rock deposited by a glacier," 1789, from Fr. moraine, from Savoy dialect morena "mound of earth," from Prov. morre "snout, muzzle," from V.L. *murrum "round object," of unknown origin, perhaps from a pre-L. Alpine language.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
| moraine (mə-rān') Pronunciation Key
A mass of till (boulders, pebbles, sand, and mud) deposited by a glacier, often in the form of a long ridge. Moraines typically form because of the plowing effect of a moving glacier, which causes it to pick up rock fragments and sediments as it moves, and because of the periodic melting of the ice, which causes the glacier to deposit these materials during warmer intervals. ◇ A moraine deposited in front of a glacier is a terminal moraine. ◇ A moraine deposited along the side of a glacier is a lateral moraine. ◇ A moraine deposited down the middle of a glacier is a medial moraine. Medial moraines are actually the combined lateral moraines of two glaciers that have merged. |
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
moraine [(muh-rayn)]A pile of debris, often extending for miles, deposited by a glacier. It is composed of rock fragments transported by the ice, which are left behind when the ice melts.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Example sentences
It is nothing more than a sandy moraine of gravel, rock, and scrub climbing straight up the mountainside.
It's no secret that the biotech boom has left a moraine of false promises and failed products in its wake.
The trip includes a short hike on the glacier's moraine.
Glaciation right up to the lake and on one side a barely visible frozen moraine.
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