crystalline
Americanadjective
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of or like crystal; clear; transparent.
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formed by crystallization.
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composed of crystals.
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pertaining to crystals or their formation.
adjective
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having the characteristics or structure of crystals
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consisting of or containing crystals
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made of or like crystal; transparent; clear
Other Word Forms
- crystallinity noun
- multicrystalline adjective
- noncrystalline adjective
- precrystalline adjective
- pseudocrystalline adjective
- subcrystalline adjective
- uncrystalline adjective
Etymology
Origin of crystalline
1350–1400; Middle English cristal ( l ) yn ( e ) < Latin crystallinus < Greek krystállinos. See crystal, -ine 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.
Scientists at Florida State University have developed a new type of crystalline material that displays rare and intricate magnetic behavior.
From Science Daily • Jan. 12, 2026
The term derives from the white crystalline powder used in cleaning, soldering, glass making and in pesticides, which in centuries past was sold as a cure-all.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025
And there’s nutty: a good crystalline parm or Manchego that adds both salt and depth.
From Salon • Dec. 16, 2025
The piece dominates a soaring atrium, capped with a curved, crystalline glass roof.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 5, 2025
He had handed over to her all the good crystalline DNA used in his original work and had agreed to confine his studies to other DNA, which he afterward found did not crystallize.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
