nacre
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of nacre
1590–1600; < Medieval Latin nacrum, nacer, variant of nacara < Old Italian naccara kind of drum, nacre < Arabic naqqārah drum
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
However, the exact processes and conditions that lead to nacre, a composite of biopolymers and platelets of crystalline calcium carbonate, are the subject of intense debate among experts, and different theories exist.
From Science Daily • Jan. 12, 2024
The mollusc deposits layers of aragonite and conchiolin, which together form nacre, also know as mother-of-pearl.
From BBC • Sep. 5, 2022
Dull on the outside, its nacre gleams pearlescent within.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 14, 2021
Some bivalves like oysters and mussels have the unique ability to secrete and deposit a calcareous nacre or “mother of pearl” around foreign particles that enter the mantle cavity.
From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013
This shell, then, has lost its lustre, its colors, and often even its nacre, if it had any; and in this altered condition it is usually entirely white.
From Lamarck, the Founder of Evolution His Life and Work by Packard, A. S. (Alpheus Spring)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
