chalcanthite

American

[kal-kan-thahyt] / kælˈkæn θaɪt /

noun

Mineralogy. blue vitriol.

chalcanthite British

/ kælˈkænθaɪt /

noun

a blue secondary mineral consisting of hydrated copper sulphate in triclinic crystalline form. Formula: CuSO 4 .5H 2 O

"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

Etymology

Origin of chalcanthite

1855–60; < Latin chalcanth ( um ) (< Greek chálkanthon blue vitriol, literally, flower of copper, equivalent to chalk ( ós ) copper + ánth ( os ) flower + -on neuter suffix) + -ite ¹

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.

It occurs in cupriferous mine waters and as the minerals chalcanthite or cyanosite, CuSO4�5H2O, and boothite, CuSO4�7H2O.

From Project Gutenberg

The oxide group of minerals—including the copper carbonates, azurite and malachite; the silicate, chrysocolla; the oxide, cuprite; the sulphates, chalcanthite and brochantite; and some native copper associated with these minerals—probably supplies another 5 per cent.

From Project Gutenberg

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