porcelain
Americannoun
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a strong, vitreous, translucent ceramic material, biscuit-fired at a low temperature, the glaze then fired at a very high temperature.
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ware made from this.
noun
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a more or less translucent ceramic material, the principal ingredients being kaolin and petuntse (hard paste) or other clays, ground glassy substances, soapstone, bone ash, etc
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an object made of this or such objects collectively
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(modifier) of, relating to, or made from this material
a porcelain cup
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of porcelain
1520–30; < French porcelaine < Italian porcellana originally, a type of cowry shell, apparently likened to the vulva of a sow, noun use of feminine of porcellano of a young sow, equivalent to porcell ( a ), diminutive of porca sow ( see pork, -elle) + -ano -an
Explanation
Your mom's favorite white china plates are probably made out of porcelain. Porcelain is a nearly translucent ceramic material used to make plates, bowls, and cups. The dishes at a fancy restaurant are often porcelain, a fine, delicate kind of china. Sometimes knickknacks, dolls, and art objects are also made from porcelain. The word comes from the Italian word for "cowrie shell," porcellana, which compares the shiny look of porcelain to the polished inside of a shell. Porcelain has a tricky spelling — although it ends with ain, it rhymes with ten, not rain.
Vocabulary lists containing porcelain
The House on Mango Street
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Brown Girl Dreaming
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White
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Porcelain Victoria's concerns are shared by Amelia, who the BBC is choosing to keep anonymous.
From BBC • Nov. 25, 2025
“The Porcelain War,” directed by Brendan Bellomo and Slava Leontyev, took the U.S. documentary grand jury prize.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 26, 2024
Eschenbach Porcelain survived Germany’s transition from communism to capitalism after 1989.
From New York Times • Sep. 19, 2022
Porcelain is known for brittle delicacy, but Kyner makes it muscular and seemingly fluid.
From Washington Post • Jan. 28, 2022
Porcelain, a fine-grained translucent pottery, was invented in China around the 7th century A.D.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
