xenocryst
[
zen
-
uh
-krist,
zee
-n
uh
-]
/ˈzɛn ə krɪst, ˈzi nə-/
noun
,
Mineralogy
1.
a rock or
crystal
engulfed by magma and retained as an inclusion in the resulting igneous rock.
Origin
xeno-
+
cryst(al)
Related forms
xenocrystic,
adjective
British Dictionary definitions for
xenocryst
xenocryst
/
ˈzɛnəˌkrɪst
/
noun
1.
a crystal included within an igneous rock as the magma cooled but not formed from it
Word Origin
C20: from
xeno-
+
cryst
(
al
)
xenocryst
in Science
xenocryst
(zěn'ə-krĭst', zē'nə-)
A crystal foreign to the igneous rock in which it occurs. Xenocrysts usually form during metamorphism. Compare
xenolith
.