lithic
1 Americanadjective
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pertaining to or consisting of stone.
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Petrology. pertaining to clastic rocks, either sedimentary or volcanic, containing a large proportion of debris from previously formed rocks.
a lithic sandstone; lithic tuff.
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Pathology. pertaining to stony concretions, or calculi, formed within the body, especially in the bladder.
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Chemistry. of, relating to, or containing lithium.
noun
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a combining form used in the names of cultural phases in archaeology characterized by the use of stone tools: Chalcolithic; Neolithic.
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a combining form meaning “of or relating to stone,” used to form adjectives: megalithic; monolithic.
adjective
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of, relating to, or composed of stone
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containing abundant fragments of previously formed rock
a lithic sandstone
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pathol of or relating to a calculus or calculi, esp one in the urinary bladder
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of or containing lithium
combining form
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Usage
What does -lithic mean? The combining form -lithic is used like a suffix used to name cultural phases in archaeology characterized by the use of a particular type of tool. Essentially, it is used in the names of eras of human history. It is most often used in archaeological and anthropological terms.The form -lithic comes from Greek lithikós, meaning “of stone.”Corresponding forms of -lithic combined to the beginning of words are litho- and -lith. Learn more at our Words That Use articles for these forms.
Other Word Forms
- lithically adverb
- prelithic adjective
Etymology
Origin of lithic1
First recorded in 1790–1800, lithic is from the Greek word lithikós of stone. See lith-, -ic
Origin of -lithic2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The other fire is covert, because it burns lithic landscapes.
From The Guardian
Modern societies are burning lithic landscapes - once-living biomass now fossilized into coal, gas and oil - which is aggravating the burning of living landscapes.
From Salon
"Society reorganized itself around fossil fuels, adapting to the combustion of lithic landscapes and ignoring the fire latent in living ones," he writes.
From Fox News
Of those five, officials said, one had a “lithic scatter” — remnants of stone tools and other culturally relevant artifacts.
From Seattle Times
"The trace fossil is associated with megafauna bones, plant material and unifacial lithic tools," the study's abstract adds.
From Fox News
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
