placer
1 Americannoun
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a surficial mineral deposit formed by the concentration of small particles of heavy minerals, as gold, rutile, or platinum, in gravel or small sands.
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the site of a form of mining placer mining in which a placer deposit is washed to separate the gold or other valuable minerals.
noun
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a person who sets things in their place or arranges them.
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a person or animal that is among the winners of a race or other contest.
noun
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A surface deposit of minerals, such as gold or magnetite, laid down by a river. The minerals are usually concentrated in one area because they are relatively heavy and therefore settle out of the river's currents more quickly than lighter sediments such as silt and sand.
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◆ The extraction of minerals from placers, as by panning, washing, or dredging, is called placer mining.
Etymology
Origin of placer1
An Americanism first recorded in 1835–45; from Latin American Spanish; Spanish: “sandbank,” from Catalan placel, derivative of plaza “open place”; see plaza
Origin of placer2
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.
His plans call for placer mining, a process that involves separating gold from the dirt and gravel beneath the ground, which he estimates was deposited in Johannesburg through ancient flash-flood and heavy rain events.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 4, 2024
Mr. Tremblay began placer mining a few years ago, a passion he admitted is stoked more by the thrill of discovery than the prospect of striking it rich.
From New York Times • Oct. 15, 2017
On this date in 1901, prospectors discovered gold four miles from Wickenburg, sparking a rush of placer miners to the Hassayampa River.
From Washington Times • Mar. 18, 2015
The placer gold, the gold that had been washed down the mountains into streams and rivers, was quickly exhausted, and what remained was deep below ground.
From Textbooks • Dec. 30, 2014
A cubic yard of ordinary placer dirt is the equivalent of less than two tons.
From The Business of Mining A brief non-technical exposition of the principles involved in the profitable operation of mines by Hoskin, Arthur J.
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.
