stratum means one of several parallel horizontal layers of material arranged one on top of another. It carries an Arena rating of 1527, earned across 2 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, stratum ranks #2,234 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #2,306 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #3,858 of 17,143 for Best Fossil-Poetry Words, #4,424 of 17,128 for Most Ponderous Words.
stratum is pronounced /ˈstɹɑː.təm/.
Why “stratum” is a great word
A horizontal layer of material, especially one of several parallel layers arranged in an ordered stack, as in geology or social classification. From Latin strātum, neuter singular of strātus (past participle of sternō, 'to spread'), literally meaning 'a thing spread out, a coverlet'; first attested in English c. 1590s. Unlike “layer,” a general term for a single thickness, or “class,” which foregrounds social status, a stratum is a formal, structural unit within a cumulative system. It is the distinct band of sandstone in a canyon wall, the sealed level of a forgotten tomb, and the precise, often unyielding, tier in a societal hierarchy—each one a pressed and settled page in the heavy book of time.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin strātum (“a spread for a bed, coverlet, quilt, blanket; a pillow, bolster; a bed”), neuter singular of strātus, perfect passive participle of sternō (“spread”). Doublet of estrade and street.
noun
- One of several parallel horizontal layers of material arranged one on top of another.e.g.“It is built of alternate strata of brick and clay, and the sides correspond to the direction of the meridians and parallels.” — 1884, Alfred Ronald Conkling, Appleton's Guide to Mexico, page 43:
- A layer of sedimentary rock having approximately the same composition throughout.
- Any of the regions of the atmosphere, such as the stratosphere, that occur as layers.
- A layer of tissue.
- A class of society composed of people with similar social, cultural, or economic status.
- A layer of vegetation, usually of similar height.
- The level of accuracy of a computer's clock, relative to others on the network.e.g.“Computers that synchronize themselves to the stratum 1 time servers are known as stratum 2 time servers if they allow others to synchronize to them, and so on.” — 2006, Roderick W. Smith, Linux Samba Server Administration:
- A historical layer of a language.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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