stalagmite means A secondary mineral deposit of calcium carbonate or other mineral, in shapes similar to icicles, that lies on the ground of a cave.
stalagmite is pronounced /stəˈlæɡˌmaɪt/.
Why “stalagmite” is a great word
A secondary mineral deposit, typically of calcium carbonate, that rises from the floor of a cave in a conical or columnar shape, formed by the dripping of mineral-rich water. From New Latin *stalagmitēs*, from Ancient Greek στάλαγμα (stálagma, 'drop') or σταλαγμός (stalagmós, 'dripping'), first attested in English in the 1680s from Modern Latin usage (c. 1650s). Unlike 'stalactite' (which hangs from above, as its etymology of *stalaktos*, 'dripping,' suggests a pendant frozen in descent) or 'speleothem' (which names the general phenomenon of cave mineral deposits without specifying form or direction), stalagmite is the patient, upward-reaching one. It is the slow accumulation of fallen drops, each leaving its microscopic burden of calcite, building a tower of stone from nothing but water and time; the blunt, broken-off tip where a visitor's hand has interrupted centuries of growth; and the massive, fluted column where a stalagmite has finally met its ceiling-bound twin—geology's answer to the myth of Sisyphus, except here the labor is invisible, the stone is the witness, and the work is never finished, only abandoned to darkness.
Etymology
From New Latin stalagmitēs, from Ancient Greek στάλαγμα (stálagma, “drop”) or σταλαγμός (stalagmós, “dripping”).
noun
- A secondary mineral deposit of calcium carbonate or other mineral, in shapes similar to icicles, that lies on the ground of a cave.e.g.“In one place, near at hand, a stalagmite had been slowly growing up from the ground for ages, builded by the water-drip from a stalactite overhead.” — 1876, Mark Twain [pseudonym; Samuel Langhorne Clemens], chapter XXXIII, in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Hartford, Conn.: The American Publishing Company, →OCLC:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- stalactite 88% match — A secondary mineral deposit of calcium carbonate or another mineral, in shapes similar to icicles, that hangs from the roof of a cave. vs stalagmite →
- speleothem 73% match — Any secondary mineral, deposited in a natural cave by the action of water. Includes formations such as stalactites, stalagmites, flowstones, and helictites. vs stalagmite →
- calthemite 67% match — Any secondary calcareous deposit, created by the action of water outside the natural cave environment. They are typically found on man made structures and mimic the shapes and forms of cave speleothems, such as stalactites, stalagmites, flowstone etc. vs stalagmite →
- rimstone 66% match — A secondary mineral deposit, with a stone-wall-like appearance made up of calcite and other minerals, that builds up to create cave pools. vs stalagmite →
- stalactiform 66% match — Resembling a stalactite. vs stalagmite →
- stalactic 66% match — Having, or relating to, stalactites. vs stalagmite →
- drystone 64% match — A stalactite or stalagmite. vs stalagmite →
- stalactitiform 64% match — Having the form of a stalactite; stalactiform. vs stalagmite →