petrography

1 of 2

noun (1)

pe·​trog·​ra·​phy pə-ˈträ-grə-fē How to pronounce petrography (audio)
pe-
: the description and systematic classification of rocks
petrographer
pə-ˈträ-grə-fər How to pronounce petrography (audio)
pe-
noun
petrographic
ˌpe-trə-ˈgra-fik How to pronounce petrography (audio)
adjective
or petrographical
ˌpe-trə-ˈgra-fi-kəl How to pronounce petrography (audio)
petrographically
ˌpe-trə-ˈgra-fi-k(ə-)lē How to pronounce petrography (audio)
adverb

petrographer

2 of 2

noun (2)

pe·​trog·​ra·​pher pə̇‧ˈträgrəfə(r) How to pronounce petrographer (audio)
plural -s
: a specialist in petrography

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

petro- + -graphy

Noun (2)

petrography + -er

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1651, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of petrography was in 1651

Rhymes for petrography

See All Rhymes for petrography

Browse Nearby Words

petrographic province
petrography
petrohyoid
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Petrography.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/petrography. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on petrography

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about petrography

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All