pe·trol·o·gy
pə-ˈträ-lə-jē 
pe-
: a science that deals with the origin, history, occurrence, structure, chemical composition, and classification of rocks
pet·ro·log·ic
¦pe‧trə¦läjik
-jēk
variants
or petrological
-jə̇kəl
-jēk-
: of or relating to petrology
Examples of petrology in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
David Bressan, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025
Her work and dedication helped establish the igneous petrology (the study of magma) and geothermal branch of the USGS.
—Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 27 Mar. 2023
Belfanti was pursuing a doctorate in igneous petrology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, before moving to Melrose, where his parents were living, in 2018.
—Jon Chesto, BostonGlobe.com, 20 Mar. 2023
Finally, in early August I’ll be headed to a SERC workshop on teaching mineralogy, petrology and geochemistry in Minneapolis –
—Erik Klemetti, WIRED, 7 June 2011
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
To establish the age of these rocks, the researchers combined petrology and geochemistry and applied two radiometric dating methods using different isotopes of the elements samarium and neodymium.
—David Bressan, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025
Her work and dedication helped establish the igneous petrology (the study of magma) and geothermal branch of the USGS.
—Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 27 Mar. 2023
Belfanti was pursuing a doctorate in igneous petrology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, before moving to Melrose, where his parents were living, in 2018.
—Jon Chesto, BostonGlobe.com, 20 Mar. 2023
Finally, in early August I’ll be headed to a SERC workshop on teaching mineralogy, petrology and geochemistry in Minneapolis –
—Erik Klemetti, WIRED, 7 June 2011
Cite this Entry
“Petrology.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/petrology. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
