noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
/ˈdaɪ.əˌɹaɪt/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:D AY1 ER0 AY2 T
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A grey intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of plagioclase feldspar, biotite, hornblende and/or pyroxene.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Topics: geography, geology, natural-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
a granular crystalline intrusive rock
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: igneous rock
History
Etymology
From French diorite, invented by mineralogist Alexandre Brongniart (1770-1847), derived from Ancient Greek διορίζω (diorízō, “distinguish”), from δι- plus ὁρίζω (horízō, “to limit”).
Across languages
Translations
14 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Catalan:
diorita
— Igneous rock
Chinese Mandarin:
閃長岩 /闪长岩
(shǎnchángyán)
— Igneous rock