karst
English
WOTD – 18 January 2010
Etymology
Borrowed from German Karst. The German term and the Slovene placename Kras (the Karst Plateau) are from Proto-Slavic *korsъ, from Italo-Dalmatian carsus (cf. Italian carso), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *ker- (“hard; rock”).[1] More at Karst.
The metathesis in the Slovene term precludes German borrowing from Slovene.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) enPR: käst, IPA(key): /kɑːst/
- (General American) enPR: kärst, IPA(key): /kɑɹst/
Audio (AU) (file) - Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)st
Noun
karst (plural karsts)
- (geology) A type of land formation, usually with many caves formed through the dissolving of limestone by underground drainage.
- 1978, M. M. Sweeting, “The Karst of Kweilin, Southern China”, in The Geographical Journal, volume 144, number 2, page 200:
- In the time available to us on our geomorphological tour we were not able to see the higher and younger karsts of Kweichow and Yunnan and Kunming.
- 2009 May 29, “Katherine Harmon”, in Top 10 New Species Discovered in 2008[ScientificAmerican.com]:
- The shells are just 0.04 inch (one millimeter) long and were found on a karst formation where conditions are damp, but the snails that inhabit them have yet to be observed.
Derived terms
Translations
type of land formation
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References
- Gams, I., Kras v Sloveniji — v prostoru in casu (Karst in Slovenia in space and time), 2003
Dutch
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /kɑrst/
Audio (file) - Hyphenation: karst
- Rhymes: -ɑrst
Noun
karst m (plural karsten)
Derived terms
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /kaʁst/
Audio (file)
Further reading
- “karst”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Icelandic
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /kʰar̥st/
- Rhymes: -ar̥st
Old High German
Alternative forms
- carsc, kars
Etymology
Unknown; perhaps from a Proto-West Germanic *karsk, *karst related to keren (“to sweep”), from Proto-Germanic *karjaną.
Declension
Spanish
Alternative forms
Further reading
- “karst”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014
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