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diopside

[dahy-op-sahyd, -sid]
noun Mineralogy.
  1. a monoclinic pyroxene mineral, calcium magnesium silicate, CaMg(SiO3)2, occurring in various colors, usually in crystals.
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Origin of diopside

1800–10; di-3 + Greek óps(is) appearance + -ide
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for diopside

Historical Examples

  • Diopside, dī-op′sid, n. a grayish and readily cleavable variety of pyroxene.

    Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)

    Various

  • Here it is believed to be an alteration product of diopside (lime-magnesia pyroxene) in a contact-metamorphic silicated zone.

  • The augite is mostly a variety of diopside and is only occasionally idiomorphic.

British Dictionary definitions for diopside

diopside

noun
  1. a colourless or pale-green pyroxene mineral consisting of calcium magnesium silicate in monoclinic crystalline form: used as a gemstone. Formula: CaMgSi 2 O 6
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Word Origin

C19: from di- ² + Greek opsis sight, appearance + -ide
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
diopside in Science

diopside

[dī-ŏp′sīd′]
  1. A light green, monoclinic variety of pyroxene, used as a gemstone and as a refractory material. Chemical formula: CaMgSi2O6.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.