OPALS

Etymology

Proper noun

Opals

(chiefly, Australia) The women's national basketball representative team of Australia.

Anagrams

• Alsop, POLSA, SAPOL, Salop, apols, salop

Noun

opals

plural of opal

Anagrams

• Alsop, POLSA, SAPOL, Salop, apols, salop

Source: Wiktionary


OPAL

O"pal, n. Etym: [L. opalus: cf. Gr. upala a rock, stone, precious stone: cf. F. opale.] (Min.)

Definition: A mineral consisting, like quartz, of silica, but inferior to quartz in hardness and specific gravity.

Note: The precious opal presents a peculiar play of colors of delicate tints, and is highly esteemed as a gem. One kind, with a varied play of color in a reddish ground, is called the harlequin opal. The fire opal has colors like the red and yellow of flame. Common opal has a milky appearance. Menilite is a brown impure variety, occurring in concretions at Menilmontant, near Paris. Other varieties are cacholong, girasol, hyalite, and geyserite.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

23 December 2024

QUANDONG

(noun) Australian tree having hard white timber and glossy green leaves with white flowers followed by one-seeded glossy blue fruit


coffee icon

Coffee Trivia

The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.

coffee icon