fluorite

American  

[floor-ahyt, flawr-, flohr-] / ˈflʊər aɪt, ˈflɔr-, ˈfloʊr- /

noun

1. a common mineral, calcium fluoride, CaF 2 , 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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fluorite British  

/ ˈflʊəraɪt /

noun

1. Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): fluorspar.   fluor.  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: cubic

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fluorite Scientific  

/ flr′īt′ /

1. 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: CaF ₂ .

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Etymology

Origin of fluorite

From Italian, dating back to 1865–70; see origin at fluor-, -ite ¹

Example Sentences

He said the five most sought-after varieties included tourmaline, aquamarine, crystallized gold, fluorite and rhodochrosite.

From New York Times • Jun. 24, 2022

Because fluoride ion is a weak base, its solubility is also affected by solution pH, and so geologic or other processes that change groundwater pH will also affect the precipitation of fluorite.

From Textbooks • Feb. 14, 2019

His eyes are bloodstones, those green gems sprinkled with red jasper, less shiny than the fluorite crystals embedded in our children’s faces, but no less spectacular.

From Salon • Feb. 1, 2019

Earlier, it had been the music from James Bond as he mixed fluorite, gypsum and talcum.

From The Guardian • Jul. 8, 2011

The knuckles of my right hand jammed against something I hadn’t remembered was there: a jagged piece of bright-purple fluorite that I’d nicked from the Earth Science room during mineral lab.

From "The Miseducation of Cameron Post" by emily m. danforth