olivine
Americannoun
noun
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Also called: chrysolite. an olive-green mineral of the olivine group, found in igneous and metamorphic rocks. The clear-green variety (peridot) is used as a gemstone. Composition: magnesium iron silicate. Formula: (MgFe) 2 SiO 4 . Crystal structure: orthorhombic
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any mineral in the group having the general formula (Mg,Fe,Mn,Ca) 2 SiO 4
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An olive-green to brownish-green orthorhombic mineral. Olivine is a common mineral in the igneous rocks, such as basalt and gabbro, that make up most of the Earth's crust beneath the oceans. Chemical formula: (Mg,Fe) 2 SiO 4 .
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◆ Olivine in which the mafic component consists entirely of magnesium is called forsterite. Chemical formula: Mg 2 SiO 4 .
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◆ Olivine in which the mafic component consists entirely of iron is called fayalite. Chemical formula: Fe 2 SiO 4 .
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of olivine
1785–95; < German Olivin, equivalent to Olive olive + -in -ine 2
Vocabulary lists containing olivine
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.
As this water moved through the rock, it reacted with olivine and produced carbonate inside fractures at lower elevations.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026
The team is now testing whether a fast-dissolving mineral called olivine could be used to neutralize the acidic runoff without releasing carbon, potentially cutting emissions drastically.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
They are produced in a number of ways but the main process involves the interaction of ground water with iron-rich minerals such as olivine.
From BBC ● Dec. 11, 2023
Alkaline materials such as limestone or olivine could be ground up or dissolved in water and then poured into the ocean from a ship.
From Science Magazine ● Nov. 30, 2023
Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, 6/- Desmond Burke goes out to India to seek his fortune, and is sold by a false friend of his, one Marmaduke Diggle, to the famous Pirate of Gheria.
From Palm Tree Island by Herbert Strang
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.
