Hypertext Webster Gateway: "granite"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Syenite \Sy"e*nite\, n. [L. Syenites (sc. lapis), from Syene,
Gr. ?.] (Min.)
(a) Orig., a rock composed of quartz, hornblende, and
feldspar, anciently quarried at Syene, in Upper Egypt,
and now called {granite}.
(b) A granular, crystalline, ingeous rock composed of
orthoclase and hornblende, the latter often replaced or
accompanied by pyroxene or mica. Syenite sometimes
contains nephelite (el[ae]olite) or leucite, and is then
called {nephelite (el[ae]olite) syenite} or {leucite
syenite}.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Granite \Gran"ite\, n. [It. granito granite, adj., grainy, p. p.
of granire to make grainy, fr. L. granum grain; cf. F.
granit. See {Grain}.] (Geol.)
A crystalline, granular rock, consisting of quartz, feldspar,
and mica, and usually of a whitish, grayish, or flesh-red
color. It differs from gneiss in not having the mica in
planes, and therefore in being destitute of a schistose
structure.
Note: Varieties containing hornblende are common. See also
the {Note} under {Mica}.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
granite
n 1: plutonic igneous rock having visibly crystalline texture
2: something having the quality of granite (unyielding
firmness); "a man of granite"
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