Why this word is great
INLAPIDATE — [Verb] To convert into a stony substance; to petrify. From Latin in- ("in") + lapis, lapidis ("stone") + -ate (verbal suffix). Unlike "petrify" (which can mean to terrify) or "ossify" (which narrows to bone), "inlapidate" is the slow, geological alchemy of organic surrender. It is the log submerged in mineral-rich waters, its fibers replaced grain by grain with quartz; the ancient fern pressed between strata, its delicate veins now stone lace; the woolly mammoth’s tusk, once ivory, now agate—each a testament to time’s patient, indifferent work of turning life to monument.