'Shale' definitions:
Definition of 'shale'
(from WordNet)
noun
A sedimentary rock formed by the deposition of successive layers of clay
Definition of 'Shale'
From: GCIDE
- Shale \Shale\, n. [AS. scealy, scalu. See Scalme, and cf. Shell.]
- 1. A shell or husk; a cod or pod. "The green shales of a bean." --Chapman. [1913 Webster]
- 2. [G. shale.] (Geol.) A fine-grained sedimentary rock of a thin, laminated, and often friable, structure. [1913 Webster]
- Bituminous shale. See under Bituminous. [1913 Webster]
Definition of 'Shale'
From: GCIDE
- Shale \Shale\, v. t. To take off the shell or coat of; to shell. [1913 Webster]
- Life, in its upper grades, was bursting its shell, or was shaling off its husk. --I. Taylor. [1913 Webster]