carat
[ kar-uh t ]
/ ˈkær ət /
|
noun
a unit of weight in gemstones, 200 milligrams (about 3 grains of troy or avoirdupois weight). Abbreviation: c., ct.
RELATED WORDS
natural, positive, honest, certain, legitimate, pure, palpable, absolute, A1, ace, capital, choice, choicest, excellent, flawless, greatest, highest, ideal, matchless, maximum
Nearby words
- caramelize,
- carangid,
- carangoid,
- carapa,
- carapace,
- caratacus,
- caratinga,
- caravaggio,
- caravaggio, michelangelo merisi da,
- caravan
Origin of carat
1545–55; < Medieval Latin carratus (used by alchemists) < Arabic qīrāṭ weight of 4 grains < Greek kerátion carob bean, weight of 3.333 grains, literally, little horn, equivalent to kerat- (stem of kéras) horn + -ion diminutive suffix
karat
or car·at
[ kar-uh t ]
/ ˈkær ət /
noun
a unit for measuring the fineness of gold, pure gold being 24 karats fine. Abbreviation: k., kt.
Origin of karat
First recorded in 1550–60; spelling variant of carat
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for carat
carat
/ (ˈkærət) /
noun
a measure of the weight of precious stones, esp diamonds. It was formerly defined as 3.17 grains, but the international carat is now standardized as 0.20 grams
Usual US spelling: karat a measure of the proportion of gold in an alloy, expressed as the number of parts of gold in 24 parts of the alloy
Word Origin for carat
C16: from Old French, from Medieval Latin carratus, from Arabic qīrāt weight of four grains, carat, from Greek keration a little horn, from keras horn
karat
/ (ˈkærət) /
noun
US and Canadian a measure of the proportion of gold in an alloy, expressed as the number of parts of gold in 24 parts of the alloyAlso spelt (in Britain and certain other countries): carat
Word Origin for karat
C16: from Old French, from Medieval Latin carratus, from Arabic qīrāt weight of four grains, carat, from Greek keration a little horn, from keras horn
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