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View synonyms for limestone

limestone

[ lahym-stohn ]

noun

  1. a sedimentary rock consisting predominantly of calcium carbonate, varieties of which are formed from the skeletons of marine microorganisms and coral: used as a building stone and in the manufacture of lime.


limestone

/ ˈlaɪmˌstəʊn /

noun

  1. a sedimentary rock consisting mainly of calcium carbonate, deposited as the calcareous remains of marine animals or chemically precipitated from the sea: used as a building stone and in the manufacture of cement, lime, etc


limestone

/ līmstōn′ /

  1. A sedimentary rock consisting primarily of calcium carbonate, often in the form of the minerals calcite or aragonite, and sometimes with magnesium carbonate in the form of dolomite. Minor amounts of silica, feldspar, pyrite, and clay may also be present. Limestone can occur in many colors but is usually white, gray, or black. It forms either through the accumulation and compaction of fossil shells or other calcium-carbonate based marine organisms, such as coral, or through the chemical precipitation of calcium carbonate out of sea water.


limestone

  1. Sedimentary rock formed primarily of calcium carbonate, often the skeletons of small marine organisms.


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Word History and Origins

Origin of limestone1

First recorded in 1515–25; lime 2 + stone

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Compare Meanings

How does limestone compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

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Example Sentences

Among the piles of specimens were six large slabs of limestone.

For now, you can ride 195 miles of its crushed limestone from the town of Norfolk in the east to Valentine in the west.

With limestone outcroppings, rocky terrain, and vast, dry prairies, Missouri’s 12,423-acre Hercules-Glades Wilderness is a mish-mash of Ozark Mountain terrain.

For limestone, he estimates that the number could be as much as twice that, because of the heat required to process the rock.

That process would convert calcium oxide back into calcium carbonate, the main component of limestone, at which point the process can simply begin again.

So he and the scouts dug into a limestone hill and built a factory in record speed.

The ship, which was carrying a consignment of limestone, broke in half.

Middlebury is gorgeous, with big, open quads and limestone buildings that echo Yale's.

The soul of his output in this period: a series of 20 limestone heads, evocative of African sculpture.

For instance, the Limestone Polypody is not happy unless there is a certain amount of lime present in the soil.

The train had long passed Hornberg, and far below the streams tumbled in white foam down the limestone rocks.

A band of limestone also occurs at Templeton containing masses of a light-coloured translucent serpentine.

An abundance of limestone makes the soil exceptionally fertile and productive.

We were now in the "limestone country," and the roads are exceedingly dusty in dry weather.

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