Main Entry:

cra·ton

Pronunciation:

\ˈkrā-ˌtän, ˈkra-\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

German Kraton, modification of Greek kratos strength — more at hard

Date:

1944

: a stable relatively immobile area of the earth's crust that forms the nuclear mass of a continent or the central basin of an ocean

— cra·ton·ic \krə-ˈtä-nik, krā-, kra-\ adjective