noun
- small round grains of calcium carbonate formed in shallow marine waters, or sedimentary rocks composed of such grains
Usage: geological
Examples
- The limestone formation contained numerous oolites that had formed in ancient shallow seas.
- Geologists identified oolites in the rock sample from the quarry.
- The beach sand included tiny oolites that rolled freely between her fingers.
- Oolites form when calcium carbonate precipitates around small particles in agitated water.
- The building stone was an oolitic limestone rich in spherical oolites.
- Under the microscope, the oolites showed distinct concentric layers.