Meanings
nounhornfels (countable and uncountable, plural hornfelses or hornfels)
plural hornfelses
- countableuncountableAny of a series of contact metamorphic rocks that have been baked and indurated by the heat of intrusive igneous masses and rendered massive, hard, splintery, and in some cases exceedingly tough and durable.
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna fine-grained metamorphic rock formed by the action of heat on clay rocks
Similar
Broader
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- GermanHornfels
- Englishhornfels
Borrowed from German Hornfels, literally "horn stone", after its frequent association with glacial "horn peaks" in the Alps.
More words from German
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan cornubianita
- cornubianitasplintery metamorphic rock
French cornéenne
- cornéennesplintery metamorphic rock
German Hornfels
- Hornfelssplintery metamorphic rock
Italian cornubianite
- cornubianitesplintery metamorphic rock
Korean 혼펠스
- 혼펠스 (honpelseu)splintery metamorphic rock
Russian роговик
- роговик (rogovik)splintery metamorphic rock
Cite this entry
APA
hornfels. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hornfels
MLA
“hornfels.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hornfels. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hornfels,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hornfels.
Source: hornfels on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.