AMPHIBOLE

amphibole

(noun) a mineral or mineral variety belonging to the amphibole group

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

amphibole (plural amphiboles)

(mineral) Any of a large group of structurally similar hydrated double silicate minerals, containing various combinations of sodium, calcium, magnesium, iron, and aluminium/aluminum

Source: Wiktionary


Am"phi*bole, n. Etym: [Gr. amphibole. Haüy so named the genus from the great variety of color and composition assumed by the mineral.] (Min.)

Definition: A common mineral embracing many varieties varying in color and in composition. It occurs in monoclinic crystals; also massive, generally with fibrous or columnar structure. The color varies from white to gray, green, brown, and black. It is a silicate of magnesium and calcium, with usually aluminium and iron. Some common varieties are tremolite, actinolite, asbestus, edenite, hornblende (the last name being also used as a general term for the whole species). Amphibole is a constituent of many crystalline rocks, as syenite, diorite, most varieties of trachyte, etc. See Hornblende.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

29 June 2024

INITIALISM

(noun) an abbreviation formed from the initial letters of the several words in the name and pronounced separately; “HTML is an initialism for HyperText Markup Language”


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Coffee Trivia

In 1884, Angelo Moriondo of Turin, Italy, demonstrated the first working example of an espresso machine.

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