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Glite Dictionary
🌼 A spiny shrub 🪨 A hard rock
whin

whin

9.9
A hard dark rock like basalt that forms cliffs
  • noun
  • /wɪn/
  • Archaic
translation icon : piedra de whin
  • Builders often avoid using whin due to its extreme hardness.

Examples

  • The path was lined with whin stones.

  • After the storm, fragments of whin were scattered along the shoreline.

  • The cliffs are composed primarily of whin, giving them a dark and rugged appearance.

  • He picked up a piece of whin from the ground.

  • The ancient walls were built from sturdy whin, giving them a dark and rugged appearance.

  • In the geological survey, we discovered a significant deposit of whin near the coastline.

  • The path wound through the hills, where whin rocks jutted out dramatically from the landscape.

Synonyms

whinstone
vswhin
  • UK
9.9

A hard dark rock people use to make roads and buildings

is found mainly in the British Isles rather than described by its use

Compounds

petty whin
  • Specialized
9.9

A small prickly shrub with bright yellow flowers that grows on moors

Surface Forms

whin singular
whins plural

Etymology

The word whin for a hard, dark rock comes from old local English and Scots where people called such rock whinstone — whin plus the word 'stone'. So think of whinstone as a very hard 'stone', which is why whin now means a dark, very hard rock.