granite
/ˈɡɹæn.ɪt/ noun, proper noun
Forms granites
- noun (geology) A group of igneous and plutonic rocks composed primarily of feldspar and quartz. Usually contains one or more dark minerals, which may be mica, pyroxene, or amphibole. Granite is quarried for building stone, road gravel, decorative stone, and tombstones. Common colors are gray, white, pink, and yellow-brown.
- noun (uncountable, figurative) Toughness; the quality of having a thick skin or being rough.
- proper noun An island of South Australia.
- proper noun A town in Colorado.
- proper noun A town in Oklahoma.
- proper noun A census-designated place in Utah.
- proper noun An unincorporated community in Laramie County, Wyoming, United States.
Etymology
From French granit (“granite”), from Italian granito (“granite”), from granire (“to granulate”), from grano (“grain”), from Latin grānum (“grain”). Compare granita.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A crystalline, granular rock, consisting of quartz, feldspar, and mica, and usually of a whitish, grayish, or flesh-red color. It differs from gneiss in not having the mica in planes, and therefor in being destitute of a schistose structure.
Etymology [It. granito granite, adj., grainy, p. p. of granire to make grainy, fr. L. granum grain; cf. F. granit. See Grain.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “granite”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details