ˈkrāˌtän noun
( -s )
Etymology: German kraton, modification of Greek kratos strength, power — more at hard
: a stable relatively immobile area of the earth's crust that forms the nuclear mass of a continent or the central basin of an ocean — compare shield
• cra·ton·al (ˈ)krā|tän ə l or cra·ton·ic -nik adjective