glauconite

American  

[glaw-kuh-nahyt] / ˈglɔ kəˌnaɪt /

noun

1. a greenish micaceous mineral consisting essentially of a hydrous silicate of potassium, aluminum, and iron and occurring in greensand, clays, etc.

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glauconite British  

/ ˈɡlɔːkəˌnaɪt /

noun

1. a green mineral consisting of the hydrated silicate of iron, potassium, aluminium, and magnesium: found in greensand and other similar rocks. Formula: (K,Na,Ca) 0.5-1 (Fe,Al,Mg) 2 (Si,Al) 4 O 10 (OH) 2 .nH 2 O

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Other Word Forms

• glauconitic
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of glauconite

1830–40; < Greek glaukón, neuter of glaukós ( see glauco-) + -ite ¹

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

glauconite

Less than a half-hour from Philadelphia, the Edelman, which opened March 29, takes full advantage of its site, once a sea teeming with marine creatures and, more recently, a glauconite quarry.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 2, 2025

Similar bodies are found in the lower part of the Siluro-Cambrian, in the Quebec group at Point Levis; and there they are filled with a species of glauconite constituting a sort of greensand rock.

From The Chain of Life in Geological Time A Sketch of the Origin and Succession of Animals and Plants by Sir J. William Dawson

The glauconite, though crystalline, never occurs well crystallized but only as dense clusters of very minute particles which react feebly on polarized light.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 1 "Gichtel, Johann" to "Glory" by Various

They are made of a mixture of sand and clay coloured dark green by a mineral called glauconite.

From The Geological Story of the Isle of Wight by J. Cecil Hughes

The magnesia and potash are, also, largely restored from the ocean; the former in dolomites and magnesian limestones; the latter in glauconite sands.

From The Birth-Time of the World and Other Scientific Essays by John Joly

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