relict
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Related to relict: mesophyte, Sclerophyllous
rel·ict
(rĕl′ĭkt, rĭ-lĭkt′)n.
1. Ecology A species that inhabits a much smaller geographic area than it did in the past, often because of environmental change.
2. Something that has survived; a remnant.
3. Law A widow or widower.
adj. Geology
Of or relating to something that has survived, as structures or minerals after destructive processes.
[From Middle English relicte, left undisturbed, from Latin relictus, past participle of relinquere, to leave behind; see relinquish. Sense 3, Middle English relicte, from Medieval Latin relicta, from feminine past participle of Latin relinquere.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
relict
(ˈrɛlɪkt)n
1. (Biology) ecology
a. a group of animals or plants that exists as a remnant of a formerly widely distributed group in an environment different from that in which it originated
b. (as modifier): a relict fauna.
2. (Geological Science) geology
a. a mountain, lake, glacier, etc, that is a remnant of a pre-existing formation after a destructive process has occurred
b. a mineral that remains unaltered after metamorphism of the rock in which it occurs
3. an archaic word for widow1
4. an archaic word for relic6
[C16: from Latin relictus left behind, from relinquere to relinquish]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
rel•ict
(ˈrɛl ɪkt)n.
1. a species or community living in an environment that has changed from that which is typical for it.
2. a remnant or survivor.
3. a widow.
[1525–35; < Medieval Latin relicta widow, n. use of feminine of Latin relictus, past participle of relinquere to relinquish]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
relict
an animal or plant surviving in one area after becoming extinct else-where; a survival of an earlier period. — relict, adj.
See also: Animals-Ologies & -Isms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Noun | 1. | relict - an organism or species surviving as a remnant of an otherwise extinct flora or fauna in an environment much changed from that in which it originated |
2. | relict - geological feature that is a remnant of a pre-existing formation after other parts have disappeared geological formation, formation - (geology) the geological features of the earth |
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