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ba·salt

(bə-sôlt, bāsôlt′)

1. A hard, dense, dark igneous rock composed chiefly of plagioclase feldspar, pyroxene, and olivine, and often having a glassy appearance.

2. A kind of hard unglazed pottery.

[From New Latin basaltēn, a misreading (in manuscripts of Pliny) of Latin basanītēn, accusative of basanītēs, a word Pliny uses of several kinds of rock, including a hard ironlike rock that the Egyptians obtained in Ethiopia, from Greek basanītēs (lithos), touchstone : basanos, touchstone (ultimately (perhaps via Lydian) from Egyptian bḫn, graywacke) + -ītēs, adjectival suffix.]

ba·saltic (-sôltĭk) adj.

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basalt

columnar basalt at Sheepeater Cliff, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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