nephrite
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of nephrite
From the German word Nephrit, dating back to 1785–95. See nephr-, -ite 1
Compare meaning
How does nephrite compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
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.
The bad news for the Richmond museum: Most of Mrs. Pratt’s two dozen flowers made of semiprecious stones like nephrite and bowenite are Fauxbergé.
From New York Times • Jun. 30, 2011
And it may in fact be any one of three very hard minerals: nephrite, jadeite and chloromelanite.
From Time Magazine Archive
As has already been said of jadeite, the jade of the nephrite variety, while slightly less hard, is about as tough a mineral as one could expect to find.
From A Text-Book of Precious Stones for Jewelers and the Gem-Loving Public by Wade, Frank Bertram
I also consider it probable that the precious Vasa Murrhina, which was brought to Rome after the campaign against Mithridates, and has given rise to so much discussion, was nephrite.
From The Voyage of the Vega round Asia and Europe, Volume I and Volume II by Leslie, Alexander, fl. 1879-1882
We first assembled in an antechamber, the only remarkable ornament of which was a large piece of nephrite, which was a little carved and had a Chinese inscription on it.
From The Voyage of the Vega round Asia and Europe, Volume I and Volume II by Leslie, Alexander, fl. 1879-1882
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.
