stalagmite

[ stuh-lag-mahyt, stal-uhg-mahyt ]

noun

1. a deposit, usually of calcium carbonate, more or less resembling an inverted stalactite, formed on the floor of a cave or the like by the dripping of percolating calcareous water.

stalagmite

/ ˈstæləɡˌmaɪt; ˌstæləɡˈmɪtɪk /

noun

1. a cylindrical mass of calcium carbonate projecting upwards from the floor of a limestone cave: formed by precipitation from continually dripping water Compare stalactite

stalagmite

/ stə-lăg′mīt′ /

1. A cylindrical or conical mineral deposit, similar to a stalactite but built up from the floor of a cave or cavern. Stalagmites are typically broader than stalactites. The two formations are often, but not always, paired, and they sometimes join at a midpoint to form a pillar.
2. Compare stalactite

Derived Forms

• stalagmitic, adjective

Other Words From

• stal·ag·mit·ic [stal-, uh, g-, mit, -ik], stalag·miti·cal adjective
• stalag·miti·cal·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of stalagmite¹

1675–85; < New Latin stalagmites < Greek stálagm ( a ) a drop ( stalag-, stem of stalássein to drip + -ma noun suffix of result) + New Latin -ites -ite ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of stalagmite¹

C17: from New Latin stalagmites , from Greek stalagmos dripping; related to Greek stalassein to drip; compare stalactite

Example Sentences

By analyzing the precipitation history chronicled in each microscopic layer of the stalagmite, the scientists could learn about short-term climate fluctuations from centuries ago.

From Salon

Yet stalagmites offer new insights into climate fluctuations because the German researchers could examine the isotopic composition of oxygen in a southern German stalagmite that had been formed from hard water.

From Salon

The researchers analysed the isotopic composition of oxygen in a stalagmite formed from calcareous water in a cave in southern Germany.

From Science Daily

The researchers from Heidelberg and Karlsruhe studied a stalagmite -- a dripstone that grows upward from the floor of a cave -- from the "Kleine Teufelshöhle" in Franconian Switzerland.

From Science Daily

With a growth rate of one to four centimetres per millennium, or an annual growth rate of about the width of a single hair, this stalagmite grew much more slowly than comparable ones.

From Science Daily