red lead
[led]
|
noun
an orange to red, heavy, earthy, water-insoluble, poisonous powder, Pb3O4, obtained by heating litharge in the presence of air: used chiefly as a paint pigment, in the manufacture of glass and glazes, and in storage batteries.
Compare litharge.
Origin of red lead
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50
Also called minium.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for red lead
Historical Examples of red lead
Chips was there the whole afternoon on his knees, messing with putty and red-lead.
ChanceJoseph Conrad
Perhaps the most interesting experiment made by Hales is the heating of minium (red-lead) with the production of oxygen.
Theophrastus mentions a substitute for vermilion, but, in spite of commentators, there is no evidence that it was red-lead.
De Re MetallicaGeorgius Agricola
The Dhimal propitiate Data and Bedata by presents of betel-leaf and red-lead.
The Ethnology of the British Colonies and DependenciesRobert Gordon Latham
The joints between the rings of tubbing are made with sheet lead one-eighth of an inch thick, coated with red-lead.
red lead
noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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