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grotto

American  
[grot-oh] / ˈgrɒt oʊ /

noun

plural

grottoes, grottos

  1. a cave or cavern.

  2. an artificial cavernlike recess or structure.

grotto British  
/ ˈɡrɒtəʊ /

noun

  1. a small cave, esp one with attractive features

  2. a construction in the form of a cave, esp as in landscaped gardens during the 18th century

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • grottoed adjective
  • grottolike adjective

Etymology

Origin of grotto

1610–20; < Italian grotta < Vulgar Latin *crupta, for Latin crypta subterranean passage, chamber. See crypt

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.