- a variation of saltpeter.
saltpetre
Britishnoun
-
another name for potassium nitrate
-
short for Chile saltpetre
Etymology
Origin of saltpetre
C16: from Old French salpetre, from Latin sal petrae salt of rock
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.
To keep it from melting, the ice was treated with potassium nitrate, otherwise known as saltpetre.
From Salon ● Dec. 31, 2020
In earlier centuries, bacon-makers who used saltpetre did not understand that it converts to nitrite as the meat cures.
From The Guardian ● Mar. 1, 2018
But a decade later, the guano was already running out, and so attention shifted to another source of nitrogen close at hand - the saltpetre flats of the Atacama desert.
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2014
When Germany was denied access to Chile’s saltpetre during the First World War, the Haber–Bosch process gave it — and the world — an alternative, which it grasped with both hands.
From Nature ● Sep. 4, 2013
There are several indigo factories and saltpetre refineries, and a tobacco factory.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 9 "Dagupan" to "David" by Various
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