a small, columnlike formation in a rock deposit, usually composed of limestone with grooved or scratched sides
Origin:
stylo- < Gr stylos (see stylite) + -lite
See stylolite in American Heritage Dictionary 4
noun
A secondary structure found along contacting surfaces of adjacent calcareous rock layers, the contact zone appearing in cross section as a series of jagged interlocking up-and-down projections that resemble a suture or the tracing of a stylus.