silver
noun
a white, ductile metallic element, used for making mirrors, coins, ornaments, table utensils, photographic chemicals, conductors, etc. Ag; 107.870; 47; 10.5 at 20°C.
silver
1 American
[sil-ver]
/ ˈsɪl vər /
noun
-
Chemistry. a white, ductile metallic element, used for making mirrors, coins, ornaments, table utensils, photographic chemicals, conductors, etc. Ag; 107.870; 47; 10.5 at 20°C.
-
coin made of this metal; specie; money.
a handful of silver.
-
this metal as a commodity or considered as a currency standard.
-
table articles made of or plated with silver, including flatware and hollowware.
-
any flatware.
The kitchen silver is of stainless steel.
-
something resembling this metal in color, luster, etc.
-
a lustrous grayish white or whitish gray, or the color of the metal.
the silver of the leaves.
-
any of the silver halides used for photographic purposes, as silver bromide, silver chloride, or silver iodide.
adjective
-
consisting of, made of, or plated with silver.
-
of or relating to silver.
-
producing or yielding silver.
-
resembling silver; silvery.
the silver moon.
-
clear and soft.
silver sounds.
-
eloquent; persuasive.
a silver tongue.
-
urging the use of silver as a currency standard.
silver economists.
-
indicating the twenty-fifth event of a series, as a wedding anniversary.
-
having the color silver.
a silver dress.
verb (used with object)
-
silvers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
silvered,
past participle, past
-
silvering
present participle
-
to coat with silver or some silverlike substance.
-
to give a silvery color to.
verb (used without object)
-
silvers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
silvered,
past participle, past
-
silvering
present participle
Silver
2
American
[sil-ver]
/ ˈsɪl vər /
noun
silver
British
/ ˈsɪlvə /
noun
-
-
a very ductile malleable brilliant greyish-white element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal. It occurs free and in argentite and other ores: used in jewellery, tableware, coinage, electrical contacts, and in electroplating. Its compounds are used in photography. Symbol: Ag; atomic no: 47; atomic wt: 107.8682; valency: 1 or 2; relative density: 10.50; melting pt: 961.93°C; boiling pt: 2163°C
-
( as modifier )
a silver coin
-
-
coin made of, or having the appearance of, this metal
-
cutlery, whether made of silver or not
-
any household articles made of silver
-
photog any of a number of silver compounds used either as photosensitive substances in emulsions or as sensitizers
-
-
a brilliant or light greyish-white colour
-
( as adjective )
silver hair
-
-
short for silver medal
adjective
-
well-articulated
silver speech
-
(prenominal) denoting the 25th in a series, esp an annual series
a silver wedding anniversary
verb
-
(tr) to coat with silver or a silvery substance
to silver a spoon
-
to become or cause to become silvery in colour
-
to become or cause to become elderly
silver
Scientific
/ sĭl′vər /
-
A soft, shiny, white metallic element that is found in many ores, especially together with copper, lead, and zinc. It conducts heat and electricity better than any other metal. Silver is used in photography and in making electrical circuits and conductors. Atomic number 47; atomic weight 107.868; melting point 960.8°C; boiling point 2,212°C; specific gravity 10.50; valence 1, 2.
-
See also sterling silver See Periodic Table See Note at element
silver
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
nonsilvernoun
-
silverernoun
-
silveringnoun
-
silvernessnoun
-
resilververb (used with object)
-
silverishadjective
-
silverlessadjective
-
silverlikeadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
silversimple
-
silverssimple
-
have silveredperfect
-
has silveredperfect
-
am silveringprogressive
-
are silveringprogressive
-
is silveringprogressive
-
have been silveringperfect progressive
-
has been silveringperfect progressive
Past
-
silveredsimple
-
had silveredperfect
-
was silveringprogressive
-
were silveringprogressive
-
had been silveringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of silver
First recorded before 900; Middle English (noun and adjective) silver(e), selver(e), selfer, Old English siolfor (originally a noun); cognate with German Silber, Old Norse silfr, Gothic silubr, akin to Serbo-Croatian srèbro, Russian serebró, Lithuanian sidãbras
Explanation
The shiny precious metal that's used for jewelry, spoons and forks, and fancy candlesticks is silver. You can also use the word silver to describe things that are the same color as silver. There are silver bracelets and silver coins, but also silver hair and a silver sky. The element known to scientists as Ag, or silver, is rare and valuable, and was once used to make money. Today many coins are silver in color, but they're usually made of nickel and copper. If you believe that every terrible event has a hopeful or encouraging aspect to it, you might say, "Every cloud has a silver lining."
Vocabulary lists containing silver
Non-Color Words to Use When Describing Color
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
White
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Black and Gray
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
He believes there is no silver bullet which will prevent a wildfire starting or spreading but that estates "need to build up layers of defence".
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
In the case of “It Ends,” the unconventional path to the silver screen is especially impressive.
From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2026
“It’s not the silver bullet Raman’s selling,” Stack said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
Prices of gold, silver, platinum and Bitcoin rose following the Treasury buyback announcement, while the dollar fell.
From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026
And I get a gorgeous sterling silver treble clef pendant with my birthstone.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
The actor also played fearsome clown Pennywise in the 1990 TV version of Stephen King's It, and was Long John Silver in 1996's Muppet Treasure Island.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
Electronic Arts, the gaming company known for franchises such as “The Sims” and “Battlefield,” has been acquired by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners for $55 billion.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026
Find insight on Endeavour Silver, Canadian wood products companies and more in the latest Market Talks covering basic materials.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
Silver Lake has also been home to several celebrities over the years, including actress Olivia Wilde, actor James Franco, and comedian Fred Armisen.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026
Silver lily pads with ruby-red flowers floated on the surface of the water.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
After four holes, one of the other golfers who had been struggling joined me at the silvers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 8, 2026
American Jake Adicoff, who took two silvers behind McKeever in Beijing, will be hoping to make it to the top of the podium.
From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2026
China's global superstar Eileen Gu won gold, her first of these Games after two silvers, with 94.75, while compatriot Li Fanghui took silver.
From BBC ● Feb. 22, 2026
She was asked by reporters whether she assessed her two completed competitions as two silvers won or two golds lost.
From Barron's ● Feb. 16, 2026
Dale replied he’d had just about enough of setting by the shipping lane in soup fog for a dozen silvers, a few dogfish, a couple of hake, and what’s more taking flack off his radio.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
A little silvered glass could be worth its weight in gold.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
At 50, still in the blush of youth by today’s silvered political standards, Porter has plenty of highway ahead of her.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2024
Ms Quinn said: "Daguerre developed a way of taking pictures using a polished silvered plate and a camera. This produced a single image printed directly onto a plate with astonishing clarity, named the daguerreotype."
From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2024
Seventeen years after the Tripod fire, the silvered trunks of dead trees still stand on many slopes.
From Seattle Times ● May 12, 2023
Her black hair, silvered by dust on one side, stood out in a halo around her head.
From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby
Bonlie, a middle-aged man with silvering hair and a cheerful manner, listened attentively as she went through her long list of symptoms and her account of two decades of intermittent misery.
From New York Times ● Mar. 3, 2022
Screen Goo is highly pigmented and has a little silvering in the paint that reflects light back at lots of different angles.
From The Verge ● Feb. 24, 2020
A thickset Catholic businessman with silvering hair and bloodshot eyes, he was wearing a loose denim shirt.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 4, 2016
This will make the inside surface of the clear plastic a perfect mirror for such rays without any need for the silvering used on common mirrors.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
The moon is out, shining through the window at one end, silvering the laundry ropes, making ghost gray shapes on the dusty floor.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
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.
