chalco-

American  

1. a learned borrowing from Greek meaning “copper,” used in the formation of compound words.

   chalcolithic.

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chalco- British  

combining form

1. indicating copper or a copper alloy

   chalcopyrite

   chalcolithic

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Usage

What does chalco- men? Chalco- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “copper.” It is occasionally used in scientific terms, especially in mineralogy. Chalco- comes from Greek chalkós, meaning “copper.” The Latin equivalent is cupr-, “copper.” Want to know more? Check out our Words That Use article on cupr-. What are variants of chalco-?When combined with words or word elements that begin with a vowel, chalco- becomes chalc-, as in chalcosis.

Etymology

Origin of chalco-

< Greek chalko-, combining form of chalkós copper