diopside

[dahy-op-sahyd, -sid]

noun Mineralogy.

a monoclinic pyroxene mineral, calcium magnesium silicate, CaMg(SiO3)2, occurring in various colors, usually in crystals.

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. 2019

Examples from the Web for diopside

Historical Examples of diopside

The augite is mostly a variety of diopside and is only occasionally idiomorphic.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 10
Various
Here it is believed to be an alteration product of diopside (lime-magnesia pyroxene) in a contact-metamorphic silicated zone.
The Economic Aspect of Geology
C. K. Leith
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

British Dictionary definitions for diopside

diopside

noun

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

Word Origin for diopside

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

Science definitions for diopside

diopside

[dī-ŏp′sīd′]

A light green, monoclinic variety of pyroxene, used as a gemstone and as a refractory material. Chemical formula: CaMgSi2O6.