stone pit
- noun
:
cantera
- The workers dug deep into the ground to create a large stone pit for extracting slate.
Examples
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Archaeologists discovered tools near the ancient stone pit, indicating it was used for quarrying centuries ago.
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The children played around the abandoned stone pit, fascinated by the huge rocks and minerals inside.
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Many old stone pits have since filled with water to become small lakes.
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The village was built near a large stone pit that supplied materials for the church.
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The workers spent all day at the stone pit extracting blocks of granite.
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The stone pit is located near the river.
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Many workers extract stone from the stone pits every day.
Synonyms
230
3.6
A large hole in the ground used for mining
55
4.9
An open place in the ground where people remove stone
9
5.4
A hole in the ground made by digging, often for building or finding old things
4
3.6
A hole in the ground where people dig gravel for building
1
3.7
A place where people dig to find old objects like bones and tools
1
8.1
A hole that people dig to take soil or gravel for building work
A large hole in the ground where people dig out chalk
An area where people dig for minerals or ancient objects
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a surface excavation where stone is extracted' is directly and transparently derivable from combining 'stone' (rock material) with 'pit' (a deep or open hole); a B1 learner who knows both words would naturally infer a hole used for extracting stone. This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common (comparable to 'quarry' or literal 'pit of stone' constructions), so the expression is readily understandable without prior exposure.
Etymology
Stone pit comes from the simple image of a deep hole called a pit where people dig out big blocks of stone. So today stone pit means 'a place where stone is taken from the ground'.