blue mass
Americannoun
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Also called mercury mass. a preparation of metallic mercury and other ingredients, used for making blue pills.
Etymology
Origin of blue mass
An Americanism dating back to 1850–55
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.
She recounts a historian's quest to prove that Abraham Lincoln took mercury-based medication called blue mass — possibly for constipation and depression.
From Salon ● Feb. 13, 2022
He would have to go over these again to put blue mass in the arteries.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
His little ball mill rolled over and over; mixing the blue mass.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
He stopped the ball mill, washed out the color gun and filled it with blue mass.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
Yes Sir, I 'member gettin' sick before de surrender, an' dey bled me and gave me blue mass pills.
From Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves, North Carolina Narratives, Part 2 by Work Projects Administration
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.
