
[Latin aditus, access, from past participle of adīre, to approach : ad-, ad- + īre, to go.]
A tunnel driven horizontally into a hillside for the purpose of mining. Such shafts were common in the early development, for example, of the South Wales coalfield.
An early style of mining in which a tunnel is driven into a hillside in order to follow or intercept seams of useful stone or veins of ore. Generally, adits are dug at a slight angle so that water naturally drains out of the tunnel.