quarry1

[kwawr-ee, kwor-ee] /ˈkwɔr i, ˈkwɒr i/
noun, plural quarries.
1.
an excavation or pit, usually open to the air, from which building stone, slate, or the like, is obtained by cutting, blasting, etc.
2.
an abundant source or supply.
verb (used with object), quarried, quarrying.
3.
to obtain (stone) from or as if from a quarry.
4.
to make a quarry in.
Origin
1375-1425; Middle English quarey (noun) < Medieval Latin quareia, variant of quareria < Old French quarriere < Vulgar Latin *quadrāria place where stone is squared, derivative of Latin quadrāre to square
Related forms
quarriable, quarryable, adjective
unquarried, adjective

quarry2

[kwawr-ee, kwor-ee] /ˈkwɔr i, ˈkwɒr i/
noun, plural quarries.
1.
an animal or bird hunted or pursued.
2.
game, especially game hunted with hounds or hawks.
3.
any object of search, pursuit, or attack.
Origin
1275-1325; Middle English querre < Old French cuiree, derivative of cuir skin, hide < Latin corium

quarry3

[kwawr-ee, kwor-ee] /ˈkwɔr i, ˈkwɒr i/
noun, plural quarries.
1.
a square stone or tile.
2.
quarrel2 (def 2).
Origin
1545-55; noun use of obsolete quarry (adj.) square < Old French quarre < Latin quadrātus quadrate
Examples from the web for quarry
  • Three other prisoners who were on the quarry ledge escaped injury by leaping 40 feet into a sandpit.
  • Pavers and quarry tile are designed especially for heavy-duty floor use.
  • The students participated in an archaeological dig at a lime quarry here.
  • It's an old quarry turned into a horticultural dreamscape.
  • And it can be dangerous, say, if an enemy strikes while the snake's coiled around its quarry.
  • After one more cautious step, she spotted her quarry: a cluster of platter-size bubbles frozen into the ice.
  • When the moment is right a cheetah will sprint after its quarry and attempt to knock it down.
  • Workers digging in a stone quarry happened to notice a stone block with marks carved onto its surface.
  • Packs hunt antelopes and will also tackle much larger prey, such as wildebeests, particularly if their quarry is ill or injured.
  • Since she is already fourteen, she should work in the quarry with the rest of her people.
British Dictionary definitions for quarry

quarry1

/ˈkwɒrɪ/
noun (pl) -ries
1.
an open surface excavation for the extraction of building stone, slate, marble, etc, by drilling, blasting, or cutting
2.
a copious source of something, esp information
verb -ries, -rying, -ried
3.
to extract (stone, slate, etc) from or as if from a quarry
4.
(transitive) to excavate a quarry in
5.
to obtain (something, esp information) diligently and laboriously: he was quarrying away in the reference library
Word Origin
C15: from Old French quarriere, from quarre (unattested) square-shaped stone, from Latin quadrāre to make square

quarry2

/ˈkwɒrɪ/
noun (pl) -ries
1.
an animal, bird, or fish that is hunted, esp by other animals; prey
2.
anything pursued or hunted
Word Origin
C14 quirre entrails offered to the hounds, from Old French cuirée what is placed on the hide, from cuir hide, from Latin corium leather; probably also influenced by Old French coree entrails, from Latin cor heart

quarry3

/ˈkwɒrɪ/
noun (pl) -ries
1.
a square or diamond shape
2.
something having this shape
3.
another word for quarrel2
Word Origin
C16: from Old French quarré; see quarrel²
Word Origin and History for quarry
n.

"what is hunted," early 14c., quirre "entrails of deer placed on the hide and given to dogs of the chase as a reward," from Anglo-French quirreie, Old French cuiriee "the spoil, quarry" (Modern French curée), altered (by influence of Old French cuir "skin," from Latin corium "hide"), from Old French corée "viscera, entrails," from Vulgar Latin *corata "entrails," from Latin cor "heart" (see heart). Sense of "anything chased in hunt" is first recorded 1610s; earlier "bird targeted by a hawk or other raptor" (late 15c.).

"open place where rocks are excavated," c.1400 (mid-13c. as a place name), from Medieval Latin quareia, dissimilated from quarreria (mid-13c.), literally "place where stones are squared," from Latin quadrare "to square" (see quadrant).

v.

1774, from quarry (n.2). Related: Quarried; quarrying.

Encyclopedia Article for quarry

quarrying

place where dimension stone or aggregate (sand, gravel, crushed rock) is mined. The products of dimension stone quarries are prismatic blocks of rock such as marble, granite, limestone, sandstone, and slate. After cutting and polishing, these materials are used in the primary construction of buildings and monuments and also for decorative facing materials applied to the exterior and interior of buildings. Dimension stones are extracted in a highly selective manner, using time-consuming and expensive methods for freeing the blocks from the surrounding rock

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