Definition of grottonext
as in cave
a naturally formed underground chamber with an opening to the surface at the heart of the shrine is a small rocky grotto into which pilgrims can descend

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Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of grotto For example, a fresco of Thecla – along with her mother and Paul – is depicted in a fifth- or sixth-century grotto just outside of Ephesus, an important city both in the Roman Empire and in early Christianity. Christy Cobb, The Conversation, 16 Jan. 2026 From the mud baths of Lo Specchio di Venere to Bagno Ascuitto’s hot-steam grotto, Pantelleria’s fringes constitute a natural spa with gurgling thermal waters. Rosalyn Wikeley, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Jan. 2026 For example, one Santa with hearing loss told grotto visitors that his cochlear implants were, in fact, microphones for speaking to their hardworking elves. Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025 The hillside grotto where Jesus and Mary are said to have rested is open to visitors but on a recent afternoon was deserted – with burned out candles evidence of prayers but not a single visitor. Jane Arraf, NPR, 29 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for grotto
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grotto
Noun
  • Steel support pillars driven into the caves have caused rust and iron pollution in the water.
    Ryan Brennan April 4, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2026
  • Mexico’s Underwater Caves Yield Glimpse Into the Past The remains were found 26 feet (8 meters) below the surface, roughly 656 feet (200 meters) into the cave.
    Ryan Brennan April 4, Kansas City Star, 4 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Be sure to visit one of the former tufa quarries, with their impressively huge caverns.
    Elizabeth Heath, Travel + Leisure, 31 Mar. 2026
  • Its caverns reach higher than 65 stories and stretch as wide as one and a half football fields — large enough to contain the Great Pyramid of Giza.
    Brit McCandless Farmer, CBS News, 29 Mar. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Grotto.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grotto. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.

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