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Dictionary


quat•er•nar•y



Pronunciation: (kwot'ur-ner"ē, kwu-tûr'nu-rē), [key]
—adj., n., pl. -nar•ies.

—adj.
1. consisting of four.
2. arranged in fours.
3. (cap.) Geol.noting or pertaining to the present period of earth history, forming the latter part of the Cenozoic Era, originating about 2 million years ago and including the Recent and Pleistocene Epochs. See table under geologic time.
4. Metall.(of an alloy) having four principal constituents.

—n.
1. a group of four.
2. the number four.
3. (cap.) Geol.the Quaternary Period or System.

Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.

quatercentennialquaternary ammonium compound
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