subduction definition | Dictionary.com

sub⋅duc⋅tion

[suh

b-duhk-shuh

–noun

1.	an act or instance of subducting; subtraction or withdrawal.

2.	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.

Origin:
1570–80; < L subductiōn-, s. of subductiō pulling up, computation; see subduct, -ion

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source

Link To subduction

sub·duc·tion (səb-dŭk'shən)

n. A geologic process in which one edge of one crustal plate is forced below the edge of another.

[French, from Latin subductus, past participle of subdūcere, to draw away from below : sub-, sub- + dūcere, to lead; see deuk- in Indo-European roots.]
sub·duct' v., sub·duc'tal (-təl) adj.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Subduction

Sub*duc"tion\, n. [L. subductio.]

1. The act of subducting or taking away. --Bp. Hall.

2. Arithmetical subtraction. --Sir M. Hale.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Cite This Source

subduction

c.1620, "withdrawal, removal," from L. subductionem (nom. subductio), from subductus, pp. of subducere (see subduce). Geological sense is attested from 1970, from Fr. (1951).

subduction (səb-dŭk'shən) Pronunciation Key
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.

subduct verb

Search another word or see subduction on Thesaurus | Reference

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Use · Advertise with Us · Link to Us · NASCAR® · Contact Us