breccia
Noun A type of sedimentary rock composed of large, angular fragments (clasts) of pre-existing rocks or minerals that are cemented together in a finer-grained matrix of clay, sand, or other mineral material. The angular nature of the fragments distinguishes breccia from conglomerate, which has rounded fragments.
Breccia is a geological term used to describe a specific rock type formed through processes that break rock into sharp pieces, which are then lithified. It is used in both scientific and general descriptive contexts.
Examples: * The fault zone was filled with breccia created by the grinding of tectonic plates. * Geologists identified the rock sample as a volcanic breccia, containing sharp fragments of lava in an ashy matrix. * The impact crater's floor is composed of breccia formed from shattered bedrock.
- Formation Contexts: The term is often modified to specify the formation process, e.g., fault breccia (tectonic grinding), impact breccia (meteorite impact), colluvial breccia (accumulation at the base of a cliff), or volcanic breccia (volcanic eruptions).
- Economic Geology: Certain types of breccia can host valuable mineral deposits (ore), as the fracturing allows for fluid flow and mineral precipitation.
- Brecciated (adjective): Describing a rock or material that has been broken into angular fragments and recemented.
- Brecciation (noun): The process of forming breccia.
- Rudaceous rock (a broader category including both breccia and conglomerate).
- Fragmentary rock (a more general descriptive term).
The core meaning of "breccia" is specific to geology and petrology. It does not have common idiomatic or metaphorical meanings outside this scientific field.
-
a rudaceous rock consisting of sharp fragments embedded in clay or sand
