Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

lithosphere

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.40 in modern English

Syllables: litho-sphere
IPA

19

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The rigid, mechanically strong, outer layer of the Earth, which is divided into twelve major tectonic plates.

noun

Any similar layer of an exoplanet.

Example Sentences

"Holonyms: Earth, earth"
"Meronym: crust"
"Then we indicate some of the more pertinent characteristics of oceanic and continental lithospheres."
"When applying Equation (3-74) to determine the downward deflection of the earth's lithosphere due to an applied load, we must be careful to include in q(x) the hydrostatic restoring force caused by the effective replacement of mantle rocks in a vertical column by material of smaller density."
"Active serpentine mud volcanoes observed in the Mariana fore-arc provide dramatic evidence for hydration of the shallow mantle wedge by H₂O fluids derived from the subducting lithosphere (Fryer. 1996: Fryer et al., 1999)."
"Holonym: planet"

Etymology

From litho- + -sphere.

Word Breakdown

Prefix: litho
Suffix: sphere

Inflected Forms

lithospheres (plural)

Derived Forms

lithospheric

Phrases

chemical lithosphere mechanical lithosphere rheological lithosphere seismic lithosphere thermal lithosphere

Frequently Paired Words

atmosphere hydrosphere cryosphere biosphere

Synonyms

geosphere

Questions

What does lithosphere mean?: The rigid, mechanically strong, outer layer of the Earth, which is divided into twelve major tectonic plates.
Where does lithosphere come from?: From litho- + -sphere.

How to pronounce lithosphere

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