quarry

== English == === Alternative forms === currie, curry (obsolete) === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈkwɒɹ.i/ (General American) IPA(key): /ˈk(w)ɔɹ.i/ (New York City, Philadelphia) IPA(key): /ˈkwɑɹ.i/ Rhymes: -ɒɹi Hyphenation: quar‧ry === Etymology 1 === From Middle English quarere, from Medieval Latin quarreria (1266), literally a “place where stones are squared”, from Old French quarrière (compare modern French carrière), from Vulgar Latin *quadraria, from Latin quadrō (“to square”), itself from quadra (“a square”), from quattuor (“four”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kʷetwóres (“four”). ==== Noun ==== quarry (plural quarries) (mining) A site for mining stone, such as limestone, or slate. ===== Synonyms ===== delf ===== Derived terms ===== ===== Descendants ===== → Irish: cairéal m → Welsh: chwarel m ===== Translations ===== ==== Verb ==== quarry (third-person singular simple present quarries, present participle quarrying, simple past and past participle quarried) (transitive) To obtain (or mine) stone by extraction from a quarry. (figuratively, transitive) To extract or slowly obtain by long, tedious searching. ===== Synonyms ===== (obtain stone by extraction): mine (extract by searching): dig, dig up, unearth ===== Derived terms ===== ===== Translations ===== === Etymology 2 === From Middle English quyrre, querre, quirre, from Anglo-Norman quiree (“entrails of deer placed on the hide and given to dogs of the chase as a reward”) (influenced by cuir (“skin (of an animal)”), from Latin corium (“a hide”)), from coree (“entrails, viscera”), from Vulgar Latin corata (“entrails”), from Latin cor (“heart”). ==== Noun ==== quarry (countable and uncountable, plural quarries) (uncountable, obsolete) A part of the entrails of a hunted animal, given to the hounds as a reward. (uncountable) An animal, often a bird or mammal, which is hunted. (countable) An object of search or pursuit. ===== Synonyms ===== mark prey target ===== Translations ===== ==== Verb ==== quarry (third-person singular simple present quarries, present participle quarrying, simple past and past participle quarried) To secure prey; to prey, as a vulture or harpy. === Etymology 3 === Alteration of quarrel (“diamond-shaped piece of coloured glass forming part of a stained glass window; square tile”). ==== Noun ==== quarry (plural quarries) A diamond-shaped tile or pane, often of glass or stone. ===== Derived terms ===== quarry light quarry tile === References === Douglas Harper (2001–2026), “quarry”, in Online Etymology Dictionary. === Further reading === quarry on Wikipedia.Wikipedia quarry (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia