massif
See also: mâssif
English edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from French massif, from Middle French massif, ultimately from Latin massa, from Ancient Greek μᾶζα (mâza, “barley-cake, lump (of dough)”).
Pronunciation edit
- IPA(key): /mæˈsiːf/, /ˈmæsɪf/
Audio (Southern England) (file) Audio (Southern England) (file) - Rhymes: -iːf
Noun edit
massif (plural massifs)
- A principal mountain mass.
- A block of the earth's crust bounded by faults or flexures and displaced as a unit without internal change; normally consists of gneisses and schists
- 2011, John Jeremiah Sullivan, Pulphead:
- The southern borders of these states are keyed to the same horizontal projection, one surveyed by the frontier planter William Byrd in 1728, while the rivers forming their northern extents fall back just opposite each other from the flanks of the Appalachian massif.
- 1921, Max Roesler, The Iron-ore Resources of Europe[1], page 68:
- Some deposits of iron ore are scattered along the edges of the massif in south - central France.
- 1891, Carl Diener, “Reviews and Notices”, in The Alpine Journal[2], volume 15, page 564:
- The southern portion of the zone from the Maritime Alps to the Pelvoux massif is complicated by the movements which have accompanied the formation of the mountains of Provence.
Translations edit
principal mountain mass
|
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
French edit
Etymology edit
Inherited from Old French massiz (with the suffix replaced by -if), from Vulgar Latin *massīcius, from Latin massa.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
massif m (plural massifs)
Derived terms edit
Adjective edit
massif (feminine massive, masculine plural massifs, feminine plural massives)
Derived terms edit
References edit
- “massif”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Middle English edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
From Middle French massif; equivalent to mass + -if.
Pronunciation edit
Adjective edit
massif
- (Late Middle English) weighty, massy, weighing very much.
- (Late Middle English, rare) massive, huge, enormous.
- (Late Middle English, rare) not sharp, unsharpened, coarse.
Related terms edit
Descendants edit
References edit
- “massī̆f, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-27.