chalcedony

American  

[kal-sed-n-ee, kal-suh-doh-nee] / kælˈsɛd n i, ˈkæl səˌdoʊ ni /

noun

chalcedonies plural

1. a microcrystalline, translucent variety of quartz, often milky or grayish.

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chalcedony British  

/ kælˈsɛdənɪ, ˌkælsɪˈdɒnɪk /

noun

1. a microcrystalline often greyish form of quartz with crystals arranged in parallel fibres: a gemstone. Formula: SiO 2

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chalcedony Scientific  

/ kăl-sĕd′n-ē /

1. A type of quartz that has a waxy luster and varies from transparent to translucent. It is usually white, pale-blue, gray, brown, or black and is often found as a lining in cavities. Agate, flint, and onyx are forms of chalcedony. Chemical formula: SiO ₂ .

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• chalcedonic
  adjective
• chalcedonous
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• chalcedonies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of chalcedony

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English calcedonie, from Late Latin chalcēdōnius (Vulgate, Revelation 21:19), equivalent to chalcēdōn- (from Greek chalkēdṓn “chalcedony,” identified by Saint Jerome with Chalcedon, the city) + -ius adjective suffix; see -ious

Example Sentences

Chalcedony occurs as a secondary mineral in volcanic rocks, representing usually the silica set free by the decomposition of various silicates, and deposited in cracks, forming veins, or in vesicular hollows, forming amygdales.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 "Cerargyrite" to "Charing Cross" by Various

The Greek Jaspis was in reality, according to Mr. King, a green Chalcedony.

From The Travels of Marco Polo — Volume 1 by Yule, Henry

Chalcedony Park with its petrified forest of mammoth trees silently testifies to a period when vegetation was rampant on what is now a desert.

From Think A Book for To-day by Hunter, Col. Wm. C.

Chalcedony may be regarded as a micro-crystalline form of quartz.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 "Cerargyrite" to "Charing Cross" by Various

Chalcedony Park with its petrified forest of mammoth trees silently testifies to a period when vegetation was rampant and on what is now a desert.

From Evening Round Up More Good Stuff Like Pep by Hunter, William Crosbie