fissure

C1 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈfɪʃ.ɚ/ UK /ˈfɪʃ.ə/ See IPA manual

Freq #31027

Meanings

1

noun
A long, narrow crack or split, especially in rock or the ground.

Lava poured out of a deep fissure in the volcano's side.
2

noun
A serious disagreement or division between people or groups.

The debate exposed a growing fissure within the party.
3

verb
To break or split into cracks.

The dried earth had fissured into a pattern of deep cracks.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a long, narrow crack or... cleft crack

2 noun · a serious disagreement or... schism

Word family

Forms fissuredfissuresfissuring

Derived forms ape-fissurecontrafissurecounterfissurefissuralfissuratefissurelessfissurelikefissuriformfissurizationfissurotomyfissurylaryngofissure

Simplified etymology

Fissure entered English in the late Middle Ages from Latin fissura, derived from findere “to split.” The same Latin verb is also the source of fission, literally a splitting.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰeyd- Proto-Indo-European *-né- Proto-Indo-European *bʰinédti Proto-Italic *findō Latin findō Proto-Indo-European *-tew-? Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂? Latin -tūra Latin fissūrader. Old French fissurebor. Middle English fissure English fissure From Middle English fissure, from Old French fissure, from Latin fissūra (“a cleft, chink”), from findō (“to cleave, split, divide”) + -tūra (nominal suffix).

fissure Middle English fissūra Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# fissure

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈfɪʃ.ɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈfɪʃ.ə/
**Frequency rank:** 31027

## Meanings
1. A long, narrow crack or split, especially in rock or the ground.
2. A serious disagreement or division between people or groups.
3. To break or split into cracks.

## Examples
- Lava poured out of a deep fissure in the volcano's side.
- The debate exposed a growing fissure within the party.
- The dried earth had fissured into a pattern of deep cracks.

## Derived Forms
- ape-fissure
- contrafissure
- counterfissure
- fissural
- fissurate
- fissureless
- fissurelike
- fissuriform
- fissurization
- fissurotomy
- fissury
- laryngofissure

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: fissure
- Root: fissūra

## Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰeyd- Proto-Indo-European *-né- Proto-Indo-European *bʰinédti Proto-Italic *findō Latin findō Proto-Indo-European *-tew-? Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂? Latin -tūra Latin fissūrader. Old French fissurebor. Middle English fissure English fissure From Middle English fissure, from Old French fissure, from Latin fissūra (“a cleft, chink”), from findō (“to cleave, split, divide”) + -tūra (nominal suffix).

## AI Etymology
Fissure is from Middle English fissure, from Old French fissure, from Latin fissūra (“a cleft, chink”), from findō (“to cleave, split, divide”) + -tūra (nominal suffix). The older chain passes through Proto-Indo-European *bʰeyd- > Proto-Indo-European *-né- > Proto-Indo-European *bʰinédti > Proto-Italic *findō > Latin findō > Proto-Indo-European *-tew-? > Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂? > Latin -tūra. In present-day use, it can mean a long, narrow crack or split, especially in rock or the ground, or a serious disagreement or division between people or groups. Derived formations include ape-fissure, contrafissure, counterfissure, fissural, and fissurate.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

markdown