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# petrification

noun (petrification, uncountable)

«petrification» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. (science) The process by which a dead plant or animal slowly turns into stone over a very long time, as minerals replace it: petrified wood. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/#m1)
2. Being so frightened that you cannot move (usually "petrified"). [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/#m2)

### In the lessons

In science lessons on fossils and rocks, petrification turns wood into stone, as in the Petrified Forest in Arizona. In stories, a monster like Medusa causes petrification, turning people to stone. In everyday talk, "I was petrified" means very scared.

### Examples

- Petrification turned the ancient tree into stone. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/#x1)
- The fossil shows petrification of the bones. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/#x2)
- Petrification takes millions of years. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/#x3)
- In the myth, Medusa's stare caused petrification. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/#x4)
- We saw petrified wood that looked like a log but was stone. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/#x5)
- Minerals in water cause petrification. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/#x6)

### Note

Uncountable. Verb: petrify; adjective: petrified (turned to stone, or very scared). Spelled petrification, not "petrifaction" (an older variant is "petrifaction", also correct).

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «petrification» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/petrification/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«petrification» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/petrification.html) on Mova free.