caldera
noun
cal·de·ra kal-ˈder-ə 
kȯl-,
-ˈdir- : a volcanic crater that has a diameter many times that of the vent and is formed by collapse of the central part of a volcano or by explosions of extraordinary violence
Did you know?
A large, bowl-shaped volcanic depression, a caldera forms when the top of a volcanic cone collapses into the space left after magma is ejected during a violent volcanic eruption. Its diameter is many times that of the original vent. The term is Spanish for "caldron." Subsequent minor eruptions may build small cones on the floor of the caldera, and the caldera may still later fill up with water; an example of this is Crater Lake in Oregon.
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Most of the suites offer private plunge pools that overlook the full sweep of the caldera and the dramatic ruin of Skaros Rock. 
Jessie Heyman, Vogue, 18 Aug. 2022 This news barely has time to register when the road makes one final hairpin turn and, far below us, the volcano’s caldera comes into view. Chris Johns, SPIN, 8 Aug. 2022 The location is optimum Santorini: on the caldera near the village of Imerovigli on the island’s northwest coast. Laurie Werner, Forbes, 15 July 2022 During the growing season, cooling fog and marine breezes from nearby San Pablo Bay swirl into the caldera, with the fog burning off late, keeping temperatures often 10 or more degrees cooler than AVAs to the north. Sara L. Schneider, Robb Report, 29 May 2022 Tucked east of the town of Napa itself, in the southern reaches of Napa Valley, Coombsville is nestled in a bowl, an ancient volcanic caldera ringed on three sides by hills at the base of the Vaca Range. Sara L. Schneider, Robb Report, 29 May 2022 Right on the edge of the famous Ngorongoro Crater, the largest inactive volcanic caldera in the world, and one of its natural wonders. Shelby Knick, Forbes, 19 May 2022 For thousands of years, the two rivers that rush down from the Yellowstone caldera and into this valley drew bison, elk and wolves—and the Apsaalooké (Crow), northern Cheyenne, Arapaho, Shoshone-Bannock and other Indigenous hunters who followed. Megan Kate Nelson, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 June 2022 The chemical makeup of the ash grains at Omo Kibish closely matched rocky debris found near the Shala volcano, the largest caldera (volcanic lake) in the region. Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, 21 Jan. 2022 See More
Jessie Heyman, Vogue, 18 Aug. 2022 This news barely has time to register when the road makes one final hairpin turn and, far below us, the volcano’s caldera comes into view. Chris Johns, SPIN, 8 Aug. 2022 The location is optimum Santorini: on the caldera near the village of Imerovigli on the island’s northwest coast. Laurie Werner, Forbes, 15 July 2022 During the growing season, cooling fog and marine breezes from nearby San Pablo Bay swirl into the caldera, with the fog burning off late, keeping temperatures often 10 or more degrees cooler than AVAs to the north. Sara L. Schneider, Robb Report, 29 May 2022 Tucked east of the town of Napa itself, in the southern reaches of Napa Valley, Coombsville is nestled in a bowl, an ancient volcanic caldera ringed on three sides by hills at the base of the Vaca Range. Sara L. Schneider, Robb Report, 29 May 2022 Right on the edge of the famous Ngorongoro Crater, the largest inactive volcanic caldera in the world, and one of its natural wonders. Shelby Knick, Forbes, 19 May 2022 For thousands of years, the two rivers that rush down from the Yellowstone caldera and into this valley drew bison, elk and wolves—and the Apsaalooké (Crow), northern Cheyenne, Arapaho, Shoshone-Bannock and other Indigenous hunters who followed. Megan Kate Nelson, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 June 2022 The chemical makeup of the ash grains at Omo Kibish closely matched rocky debris found near the Shala volcano, the largest caldera (volcanic lake) in the region. Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, 21 Jan. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Spanish, literally, cauldron, from Late Latin caldaria — more at cauldron
First Known Use
1667, in the meaning defined above