sylvanite

American  

[sil-vuh-nahyt] / ˈsɪl vəˌnaɪt /

noun

1. a mineral, gold silver telluride, (AuAg)Te 2 , silver-white with metallic luster, often occurring in crystals so arranged as to resemble written characters: an ore of gold.

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sylvanite British  

/ ˈsɪlvəˌnaɪt /

noun

1. a silver-white mineral consisting of a telluride of gold and silver in the form of elongated striated crystals: a source of gold in Australia and North America. Formula: (Au,Ag)Te 2

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Etymology

Origin of sylvanite

1790–1800; named after Transylvania; -ite ¹

Example Sentences

Chunks of sylvanite that sweat gold in the fire.

From Rimrock Trail by Dunn, J. Allan, (Joseph Allan)

He figgers this sylvanite lies under this porphyry reef, sabe?

From Rimrock Trail by Dunn, J. Allan, (Joseph Allan)

A small part of the world's supply is obtained from the gold-silver tellurides—calaverite, sylvanite, krennerite, and petzite.

From The Economic Aspect of Geology by Leith, C. K. (Charles Kenneth)

Experience counts a lot, of course, but I do know something about sylvanite, or white gold.

From Rimrock Trail by Dunn, J. Allan, (Joseph Allan)

This side the exposed reef may have been ground down below the sylvanite.

From Rimrock Trail by Dunn, J. Allan, (Joseph Allan)