amphibole

American

[am-fuh-bohl] / ˈæm fəˌboʊl /

noun

Mineralogy.

any of a complex group of hydrous silicate minerals, containing chiefly calcium, magnesium, sodium, iron, and aluminum, and including hornblende, tremolite, asbestos, etc., occurring as important constituents of many rocks.

amphibole British

/ ˈæmfɪˌbəʊl /

noun

any of a large group of minerals consisting of the silicates of calcium, iron, magnesium, sodium, and aluminium, usually in the form of long slender dark-coloured crystals. Members of the group, including hornblende, actinolite, and tremolite, are common constituents of igneous rocks

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

amphibole Scientific

/ ăm′fə-bōl′ /

Any of a large group of usually dark minerals composed of a silicate joined to various metals, such as magnesium, iron, calcium or sodium. Amphiboles occur as columnar or fibrous prismatic crystals in igneous and metamorphic rocks. Most are monoclinic, but some are orthorhombic. Hornblende, actinolite and glaucophane are amphiboles. Chemical formula: (Mg,Fe,Ca,Na) _2-3 (Mg,Fe,Al) ₅ (Si,Al) ₈ O ₂₂ OH ₂ .

Etymology

Origin of amphibole

1600–10; < French < Late Latin amphibolus amphibolous

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

amphibole

The most common amphibole, hornblende, is usually black; however, they come in a variety of colors depending on their chemical composition.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2017

These include minerals such as quartz, feldspar, mica, amphibole, pyroxene, olivine, and a great variety of clay minerals.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

This effect is especially strong if the new minerals are platy like mica or elongated like amphibole.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

The results of this process are illustrated in Figure 5.10, which shows a granitic rock in which some of the biotite and amphibole have been altered to form the iron oxide mineral limonite.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

This quantity amounts in the basalt of the modern mineralogists only to 0.20, while in amphibole it exceeds 0.

From Personal Narrative of Travels to the Equinoctial Regions of America, During the Year 1799-1804 — Volume 1 by Thomasina Ross

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023