Fine-grained rock
The crossword clue "Fine-grained rock" is answered by SHALE, a 5-letter entry. Used 17 times across 13 distinct years; most recently in 2023; first recorded in 1955. It appears in 5 publications in the xd corpus. Every figure on this page comes from the collection data itself, never from a guess.
The answer
SHALE
5 letters. See every clue for this answer on the SHALE answer page.
Used 17 times across 13 distinct years; most recently in 2023; first recorded in 1955. It appears in 5 publications in the xd corpus. Frequency and last-seen figures come from the xd crossword corpus only.
Other answers for this clue
The same clue has also been answered these ways in the xd corpus. Answers inside this collection link to their own answer page.
- CHERT (1 uses in xd)
Other clues for SHALE
Every other clue in this collection answered by SHALE, most used first.
- Layered rock - used 51 times, most recently in 2026
- Fissile rock - used 48 times, most recently in 2025
- Oil source - used 48 times, most recently in 2021
- Sedimentary rock - used 28 times, most recently in 2025
- Oil-bearing rock - used 27 times, most recently in 2026
- Oil-yielding rock - used 17 times, most recently in 2023
- Laminated rock - used 15 times, most recently in 2014
- Petroleum source - used 12 times, most recently in 2024
- Oil-producing rock - used 9 times, most recently in 2020
- Rock that's "fracked" - used 9 times, most recently in 2025
- Fracking target - used 7 times, most recently in 2024
- Fuel-yielding rock - used 7 times, most recently in 2023
- Easily split rock - used 6 times, most recently in 2020
- Flaky rock - used 6 times, most recently in 2026
- Fossil-yielding rock - used 6 times, most recently in 2026
- Stratified rock - used 6 times, most recently in 2006
Related clues
Clues in this collection of the same answer length that share a word with this clue, or match its answer pattern when no word is shared. Most used first.
- Molten rock - MAGMA, used 125 times
- Rock bottom - NADIR, used 75 times
- Crystal-lined rock - GEODE, used 73 times
- Fine-tune - TWEAK, used 54 times
- Banded rock - AGATE, used 49 times
- Rock concert venue - ARENA, used 49 times
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