From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishstalactitestal‧ac‧tite /ˈstæləktaɪt $ stəˈlæktaɪt/ noun [countable] HEGa sharp pointed object hanging down from the roof of a cave, which is formed gradually by water that contains minerals as it drops slowly from the roof → stalagmite
Examples from the Corpus
stalactite• Ruth clung to him as her wide eyes drank in the nightmare splendour of the illuminated stalagmites and stalactites.• In another, stalactites reached down to the floor and they walked through a forest of pillars.• A few that remain protrude from the side and top, synthetic stalactites in a cavern of the sea.• If the straw becomes blocked, the water flows down the outside, building up the calcite and forming tapering stalactites.• Travellers who come to view the stalactites without guides often become disoriented.• Jewel-tipped stalactites hung from the cavern roof, aglow like many little lamps.• And sometimes columns are formed when stalactites and stalagmites meet and join together.Origin stalactite (1600-1700) Modern Latin stalactites, from Greek stalaktos “falling in drops” 