chrysoprase

[ kris-uh-preyz ]

noun

, Mineralogy.

1. a green variety of chalcedony, sometimes used as a gem.

chrysoprase

/ ˈkrɪsəˌpreɪz /

noun

1. an apple-green variety of chalcedony: a gemstone

Word History and Origins

Origin of chrysoprase¹

1250–1300; Middle English < Latin chrȳsoprasus < Greek chrȳsóprasos, equivalent to chrȳso- chryso- + prás ( on ) leek + -os noun suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of chrysoprase¹

C13 crisopace, from Old French, from Latin chrӯsoprasus, from Greek khrusoprasos, from chryso- + prason leek

Example Sentences

Her pretty lips laughed as she swam towards him, the sole atom in an immensity of chrysoprase.

From Project Gutenberg

The chrysoprase of the moderns is certainly not the chrysoprasius of Pliny, or the χρυσόπρασος of Greek writers.

From Project Gutenberg

But at a much earlier date the Silesian chrysoprase was used for mural decoration at the Wenzel chapel at Prague.

From Project Gutenberg

Much commercial chrysoprase is chalcedony artificially stained by impregnation with a green salt of nickel.

From Project Gutenberg

The saffron became fire; the fire lit up a heaven of chrysoprase and rose.

From Project Gutenberg