Definition of "stalagmite" [sta•lag•mite]

• A conical mineral deposit, usually calcite or aragonite, built up on the floor of a cavern, formed from the dripping of mineral-rich water. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• ": A 1,800-year-old stalagmite from a Chinese cave has revealed that, in the past, warmer years were associated with stronger East Asian monsoons."
• "The findings come from 1,800-year record of the Asian monsoon preserved in a stalagmite from a Chinese cave."
• "The top of the stalagmite was a bulbous shape that extended out from the curve."