stibnite

[stib-nahyt]

noun

a soft mineral, antimony sulfide, Sb2S3, lead-gray in color with a metallic luster, occurring in crystals, often acicular, or in bladed masses: the most important ore of antimony.

Origin of stibnite

1850–55; stib(i)ne (in obsolete sense “stibnite”) + -ite¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for stibnite

Historical Examples of stibnite

Of these the only one in sufficient abundance for smelting is the common sulphide known as grey antimony or stibnite.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I
Arnold Cooley
Stibnite is found in a variety of associations and is present in small quantities in many types of deposits.
The Economic Aspect of Geology
C. K. Leith
The antimony sulphide, stibnite, is the source of most of the world's production of this metal.
The Economic Aspect of Geology
C. K. Leith
The commercial ore of this metal is the sulphide known as stibnite, or gray antimony.
The A B C of Mining
Charles A. Bramble
Although antimony occurs in many minerals, the only commercial source is the sulphide, stibnite.
The A B C of Mining
Charles A. Bramble

British Dictionary definitions for stibnite

stibnite

noun

a soft greyish mineral consisting of antimony sulphide in orthorhombic crystalline form. It occurs in quartz veins and is the chief ore of antimony. Formula: Sb 2 S 3

Word Origin for stibnite

C19: from obsolete stibine stibnite + -ite 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012