quarry

noun quar·ry \ ˈkwȯr-ē , ˈkwär- \

plural quarries

1 obsolete : a heap of the game killed in a hunt

2 : game; specifically : game hunted with hawks

3 : one that is sought or pursued : prey

Origin and Etymology of quarry

Middle English quirre, querre entrails of game given to the hounds, from Anglo-French cureie, quereie, from quir, cuir skin, hide (on which the entrails were placed), from Latin corium — more at cuirass

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First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Other Hunting and Fishing Terms

chum, covert, creel, flense, pitfall, seine, skulk, spoor, trawl

quarry

noun

plural quarries

1 : an open excavation usually for obtaining building stone, slate, or limestone

2 : a rich source

Origin and Etymology of quarry

Middle English quarey, alteration of quarrere, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *quadraria, from Late Latin quadrus hewn (literally, squared) stone, from Latin quadrum square

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First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Other Mining and Drilling Terms

ore, trepan, wildcat

quarry

verb

quarried; quarrying

transitive verb

1 : to dig or take from or as if from a quarry

quarry marble

2 : to make a quarry in

quarry a hill

intransitive verb

: to delve in or as if in a quarry

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Examples of quarry in a Sentence

an area where workers are quarrying for limestone

First Known Use of quarry

1774

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

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Other Mining and Drilling Terms

ore, trepan, wildcat

quarry

noun

plural quarries

: a diamond-shaped pane of glass, stone, or tile

Origin and Etymology of quarry

alteration of ¹quarrel

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First Known Use: 1537

in the meaning defined above

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Other Architecture Terms

buttress, casita, cornice, fanlight, garret, lintel, parapet, pilaster, plinth

QUARRY Defined for English Language Learners

quarry

verb

: to dig or take (stone or other materials) from a quarry
: to make a quarry in (a place)

QUARRY Defined for Kids

quarry

noun quar·ry \ ˈkwȯr-ē \

plural quarries

: an animal or bird hunted as game or prey

History for quarry

Quarry in the meaning “game” or “prey” can be traced to a hunting ritual from medieval times. At the end of a successful hunt the hounds used in the pursuit were rewarded with a part of the slain animal's entrails. Traditionally the entrails were spread out on the animal's hide. The word for the hounds' feast in medieval French was cuiree, a derivative of cuir, meaning “skin, hide.” Cuiree was borrowed into English as querre or quirre. Over time the meaning of the word shifted from the slain animal's entrails to the live animal itself, seen as the object of a hunt.

quarry

noun

plural quarries

: an open pit usually for obtaining building stone, slate, or limestone

History for quarry

The origin of this word is completely different from that of the quarry meaning “prey.” The word quadrus in Latin meant “hewn stone” and is related to Latin quadrum, “square,” and quadri-, “four” (as in English quadrilateral). From a derivative of quadrum came Old French quarrere, “pit for cutting stone,” which was borrowed into English and eventually altered to quarry.