stalactite

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   an icicle-shaped mineral deposit that hangs from the roof of a cave

   Water dripped steadily from the tip of the limestone stalactite.

From New Latin stalactites, based on Greek stalaktos, 'dripping,' from stalassein, 'to drip.' The name describes a deposit built downward by mineral-bearing drops; stalagmite, for a formation rising from the floor, was created later from the same Greek family.

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