grike

English

Etymology

Unknown

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡɹaɪk/

  • Audio (Southern England)

    (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪk

Noun

grike (plural grikes)

1. (chiefly British) A deep cleft formed in limestone surfaces due to water erosion; providing a unique habitat for plants.
   • 1922, James Joyce, Ulysses:

     He climbed over the sedge and eely oarweeds and sat on a stool of rock, resting his ashplant in a grike.

   • 1973, Kyril Bonfiglioli, Don't Point That Thing at Me, Penguin, published 2001, page 157:

     The Crag is a sort of crag-shaped feature of limestone, rich in minerals and seamed with crevasses or ‘grikes’ as they call them hereabouts.

Synonyms

• scailp

See also

• clint
• limestone pavement

Anagrams

• Kiger, krige