SHALE
shale
(noun) a sedimentary rock formed by the deposition of successive layers of clay
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
shale (countable and uncountable, plural shales)
A shell or husk; a cod or pod.
(geology) A fine-grained sedimentary rock of a thin, laminated, and often friable, structure.
Usage notes
Before the mid 19th century, the terms shale, slate and schist were not sharply distinguished. Shales that are subject to heat and pressure alter into slate, then schist and finally to gneiss.
Verb
shale (third-person singular simple present shales, present participle shaling, simple past and past participle shaled)
To take off the shell or coat of.
Synonyms
• shell
Anagrams
• Hales, Heals, Sahel, Saleh, Selah, hales, halse, heals, leash, selah, sheal
Source: Wiktionary
Shale, n. Etym: [AS. scealy, scalu. See Scalme, and cf. Shell.]
1. A shell or husk; a cod or pod. "The green shales of a bean." Chapman.
2. Etym: [G. shale.] (Geol.)
Definition: A fine-grained sedimentary rock of a thin, laminated, and often friable, structure. Bituminous shale. See under Bituminous.
Shale, v. t.
Definition: To take off the shell or coat of; to shell. Life, in its upper grades, was bursting its shell, or was shaling off its husk. I. Taylor.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
25 March 2025
IMMOBILIZATION
(noun) fixation (as by a plaster cast) of a body part in order to promote proper healing; “immobilization of the injured knee was necessary”
Do you know this game?
Wordscapes is a popular word game consistently in the top charts of both Google Play Store and Apple App Store. The Android version has more than 10 million installs. This guide will help you get more coins in less than two minutes of playing the game. Continue reading Wordscapes: Get More Coins