plutonism
nounEtymology From Pluto + -ism, after the classical ruler of the underworld.
1
The old geological theory that the rocks forming the Earth were formed in fire by volcanic activity, with a continuing gradual process of weathering and erosion, then deposited on the sea bed, re-formed into layers of sedimentary rock by heat and pressure, and raised again.
- Synonyms
- vulcanism
- Related terms
- Plutonist
- Coordinate terms
- Neptunism