stratification

[ strat-uh-fi-key-shuhn ]

noun

1. the act or an instance of stratifying.
2. a stratified state or appearance:

   the stratification of ancient ruins from eight different periods.

3. Also called social stratification. Sociology. the hierarchical or vertical division of society according to rank, caste, or class:

   stratification of feudal society.

4. Geology.
   1. formation of strata; deposition or occurrence in strata.
   2. a stratum.

stratification

/ ˌstrætɪfɪˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. the arrangement of sedimentary rocks in distinct layers (strata), each layer representing the sediment deposited over a specific period
2. the act of stratifying or state of being stratified
3. sociol See social stratification

stratification

/ străt′ə-fĭ-kā′shən /

1. Formation or deposition of layers, as of rock, sediments, or atmospheric regions.

stratification

1. The process by which materials form or are deposited in layers, as in sedimentary rocks and some igneous rocks .

Notes

The atmosphere and the ocean also exhibit stratification, with the warmer air or water occupying the upper layers.

Derived Forms

• ˌstratifiˈcational, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of stratification¹

First recorded in 1610–20, stratification is from the Medieval Latin word strātificātiōn- (stem of strātificātiō ). See strati-, -fication

Word History and Origins

Origin of stratification¹

C17 (in the obsolete sense: the act of depositing in layers) and C18 (in the current senses): from New Latin strātificātiōnem, from stratificāre to stratify

Example Sentences

The top luxury groups across the board are shrugging off the war in Ukraine and a stock market meltdown, pointing to a stratification in spending between the wealthy and the mere mass affluent.

From Quartz

That finding appeared in the February Research in Social Stratification and Mobility.

From Science News

Los Angeles county isn’t using a risk stratification at their mega vaccination sites, and we are very candid about the model we are using given the amount of doses we have.

From Time

Those kinds of literacy tests were ultimately rejected because of the stratification and the exclusion that they introduced.

From MIT Technology Review

Priorities should be based on risk stratification, with more immediate access given to vulnerable populations such as the elderly, people with diabetes and obesity, or people in high-risk occupations.

From Fortune

Indeed, in a world that seems bent on social stratification, the Juggalos are still busting things up, confusing the Man.

From The Daily Beast

Even when one breaches the list at Chiltern, other layers of social stratification exist inside.

From The Daily Beast

But to have there be a gender stratification when it comes to music?

From The Daily Beast

I had just finished Close Encounters so I decided to write about social stratification on a film set.

From The Daily Beast

Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, 28 (2), 171-197.

From The Daily Beast

The stratification at Broughton is peculiar, and different from anything that is found either in Thetford or Coleraine.

From Project Gutenberg

Much of the rock-surface was dense granite comparatively free from cleavage lines, soft materials, or stratification.

From Project Gutenberg

Two instances of this waved stratification of the Lake Superior sandstone deserve notice.

From Project Gutenberg

It is recently asserted that this change in the stratification occurs about a mile above the Falls.

From Project Gutenberg

Such is the condition of the disturbed stratification at the Porcupine Mountains.

From Project Gutenberg