fluorite

[ floor-ahyt, flawr-, flohr- ]

/ ˈflʊər aɪt, ˈflɔr-, ˈfloʊr- /

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noun

a common mineral, calcium fluoride, CaF2, occurring in green, blue, purple, yellow, or colorless crystals, usually in cubes: the principal source of fluorene, used also as a flux in metallurgy and for ornament.

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Also called fluor, fluorspar, fluor spar.

Origin of fluorite

From Italian, dating back to 1865–70; see origin at fluor-, -ite¹

Words nearby fluorite

fluoridize, fluorimeter, fluorinate, fluorine, fluorine dating, fluorite, fluoro-, fluorocarbon, fluorochemical, fluorochrome, fluorography

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use fluorite in a sentence

Some fissure veins of fluorite in limestone in southern Illinois are twenty to forty feet wide.
Geology|William J. Miller
Fluorite is widely distributed, most commonly in vein deposits, often associated with metallic ores.
Geology|William J. Miller
In England, fluorite is obtained in this manner as a by-product from lead and zinc mines.
The Economic Aspect of Geology|C. K. Leith
Only certain varieties of fluorite show the phenomenon well.
The Nature of Animal Light|E. Newton Harvey

Agricola derived the name fluores from fluo "to flow," and we in turn obtain "fluorite," or "fluorspar," from Agricola.
De Re Metallica|Georgius Agricola

British Dictionary definitions for fluorite

fluorite

/ (ˈflʊəraɪt) /

noun

US and Canadian a white or colourless mineral sometimes fluorescent and often tinted by impurities, found in veins and as deposits from hot gases. It is used in the manufacture of glass, enamel, and jewellery, and is the chief ore of fluorine. Composition: calcium fluoride. Formula: CaF 2 . Crystal structure: cubicAlso called (in Britain and certain other countries): fluorspar, fluor

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

Scientific definitions for fluorite

fluorite

[ flur′īt′ ]

A transparent to translucent mineral occurring in many colors, especially yellow and purple, and usually in cube-shaped crystals with octahedral cleavage. It is found in sedimentary rocks and in ore deposits within igneous rocks. It is often fluorescent in ultraviolet light. Chemical formula: CaF2.