crystall-

¹ American  

1. variant of crystallo- before a vowel.

   crystallite.

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crystall. ² American  

abbreviation

1. crystallography.

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Usage

What does crystall- mean? Crystall- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “crystal.” It is used in some scientific terms, especially in geology and mineralogy. Crystall- comes from the Greek krýstallos, meaning “clear ice, rock crystal,” source of the word crystal, as you may have guessed. But did you guess the following? The Greek krýstallos is related to krýos, meaning “ice cold” or “frost” and source of the combining form cryo-. Learn more in our Words That Use cryo- article. Crystall- is a variant of crystallo-, which loses its -o- when combined with words or word elements beginning with vowels. Another variant of crystallo- is crystalli-, as in crystalliferous. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use crystallo- and crystalli- articles.