quarry1

 
Pronunciation: /ˈkwɒri/

noun (plural quarries)

  • a place, typically a large, deep pit, from which stone or other materials are or have been extracted: a limestone quarry

verb (quarries, quarrying, quarried)

[with object]
  • extract (stone or other materials) from a quarry: limestone is quarried for use in blast furnaces
  • cut into (rock or ground) to obtain stone or other materials: the hillside had been quarried for many years figurative the papers have been extensively quarried by historians

Derivatives

quarrier

noun

Origin:

Middle English: from a variant of medieval Latin quareria, from Old French quarriere, based on Latin quadrum 'a square'. The verb dates from the late 18th century