limestone English · revision 39868

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=compound|attested=late 14th century}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * UK: /ˈlaɪmˌstəʊn/^(Wiktionary)

+ * US: /ˈlaɪmˌstoʊn/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It was formed [[af|en|lime|stone]] in English,^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002)^(Johnson 1755) because the rock yields [[lime]] when it is burned.^(Etymonline)^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The rock that yields lime when burned: Etymonline dates the word to the late 14th century,^(Etymonline) the Shorter Oxford to late Middle English^(SOED 2002) and Merriam-Webster to the 14th century,^(MWU 2024) while the OED's first example is from Fitzherbert's ''Book of Surveying'' (1523)^(OED 2026) and Dictionary.com dates it to 1515–25.^(Dictionary.com 2016)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The meaning has stayed close to the original: Johnson (1755) defined it as the stone from which lime is made, quoting Mortimer's ''Husbandry'' on spreading it on cold land.^(Johnson 1755) From 1664, in John Evelyn, it was also used of a particular kind or a piece of this rock,^(OED 2026) and since the late 17th century attributively, of things made of limestone.^(SOED 2002) The OED notes that [[marble]] is its crystalline form.^(OED 2026) Mostly in American English the rock is also called ''limerock''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * late 14th century – limestone.^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002)

+ * 1523 – the OED's first example.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1664 – a kind or a piece of the rock.^(OED 2026)

+ * late 17th century – attributive, made of limestone.^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[sedimentary]] [[rock]] made chiefly of [[calcium carbonate]], often formed from shells and [[coral]], which yields lime when burned and is used for building and in making [[cement]].^(SOED 2002)^(MWU 2024)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A brownish colour, ''hair brown''.^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[lime]]

+ * [[chalk]]

+ * [[marble]]

+ * [[dolomite]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}