Definition of LAVA

lava

Plural: lavas

Noun

  • Molten rock flowing from a volcano.
  • rock that in its molten form (as magma) issues from volcanos; lava is what magma is called when it reaches the surface
  • The molten rock ejected by a volcano from its crater or fissured sides; magma that has breached the surface of the earth.
  • Magma.
  • A shade of red, named after the volcanic lava.

Examples

  • The intense heat of the Words With Friends game felt like playing on a field of LAVA.

Origin / Etymology

From Italian, from Neapolitan and Sicilian lava (“lava”, but also “downpour overflowing the streets”). Likely in the sense of “landslide, torrent” from Latin labes (“fall”), compare labina (“avalanche, landslide”). A supposed relation with lavare (“to wash”) is now widely discredited. Neither is there probably any relation with Arabic لابة (lāba, “black volcanic rock”). Alternatively the Romance words are connected with Provençal lavo, lauvo (“flat stone”), from a Vulgar Latin source borrowed from a Celtic language such as Gaulish *lawā, but ultimately of obscure origin; see Proto-Celtic *līwos for details.

Scrabble Score: 7

lava: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
lava: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
lava: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 9

lava: valid Words With Friends Word