Meanings
nounmolasse (countable and uncountable, plural molasses)
plural molasses
- countableuncountablegeographyA shallow deposit of sandstone, shale and conglomerate in front of a rising mountain chain.
The molasse provides a record of the wearing down of the Alpine range at a late stage; unlike the Flysch, it is largely non-marine.
2004, Richard Fortey, The Earth, Folio Society, published 2011, page 109
Origin
- Latinmollis“soft”
- Frenchmolasse
- Englishmolasse
From French molasse, a kind of sandstone, from Latin mollis (“soft”).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Czech molasa
- molasarock deposit
French molasse
- molasserock deposit
German Molasse
- Molasserock deposit
Greek μολάσα
- μολάσα (molása)rock deposit
Italian molassa
- molassarock deposit
Russian мола́сса
- мола́сса (molássa)rock deposit
Spanish molasa
- molasarock deposit
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
APA
molasse. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/molasse
MLA
“molasse.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/molasse. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “molasse,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/molasse.
Source: molasse on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.