talc

American  

[talk] / tælk /

noun

1. Also talcum a green-to-gray, soft mineral, hydrous magnesium silicate, Mg 3 (Si 4 O10 )(OH) 2 , unctuous to the touch, and occurring usually in foliated or compact masses, used in making lubricants, talcum powder, electrical insulation, etc.

2. talcum powder.

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verb (used with object)

• talcs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• talced,
  past participle,  past
• talcked,
  past participle,  past
• talcing,
  present participle
• talcking
  present participle

1. to treat or rub with talc.

talc British  

/ tælk /

noun

1. See talcum powder

2. a white, grey, brown, or pale green mineral, found in metamorphic rocks. It is used in the manufacture of talcum powder and electrical insulators. Composition: hydrated magnesium silicate. Formula: Mg 3 Si 4 O 10 (OH) 2 . Crystal structure: monoclinic

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verb

1. (tr) to apply talc to

talc Scientific  

/ tălk /

1. A very soft white, greenish, or gray monoclinic mineral usually occurring as massive micalike flakes in igneous or metamorphic rocks. It has a soapy texture and is used in face powder and talcum powder, for coating paper, and as a filler in paints and plastics. Chemical formula: Mg ₃ Si ₄ O ₁₀ (OH) ₂ .

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• talcose
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• talcing
  present
• talcking
  present
• talced
  past
• talcked
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• talc
  simple
• talcs
  simple
• have talced
  perfect
• have talcked
  perfect
• has talced
  perfect
• has talcked
  perfect
• am talcing
  progressive
• am talcking
  progressive
• are talcing
  progressive
• are talcking
  progressive
• is talcing
  progressive
• is talcking
  progressive
• have been talcing
  perfect progressive
• have been talcking
  perfect progressive
• has been talcing
  perfect progressive
• has been talcking
  perfect progressive

Past

• talced
  simple
• talcked
  simple
• had talced
  perfect
• had talcked
  perfect
• was talcing
  progressive
• was talcking
  progressive
• were talcing
  progressive
• were talcking
  progressive
• had been talcing
  perfect progressive
• had been talcking
  perfect progressive

Future

• will talc
  simple
• will have talced
  perfect
• will have talcked
  perfect
• will be talcing
  progressive
• will be talcking
  progressive
• will have been talcing
  perfect progressive
• will have been talcking
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of talc

1595–1605; < Medieval Latin talcum < Arabic ṭalq mica < Persian talk

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

talc talcs talcing

L’Oréal has engaged restructuring advisers to explore options for mounting U.S. legal liabilities stemming from its use of talc and other chemicals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

Consumer-goods manufacturers, including Avon Products and Johnson & Johnson, have turned to bankruptcy court in recent years to deal with an avalanche of lawsuits alleging that cosmetic talc caused cancer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

Earlier in July, a federal court handed the firm a victory by questioning individual plaintiffs' ability to show that talc was the direct cause of their ovarian cancer.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

But kudos to Johnson & Johnson, which fought the tort bar and will likely settle talc lawsuits for billions of dollars less than it offered a few years ago.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Amid tins of talc and boxes of bobby pins she would curl up on the floor of the storage room, speaking in non sequiturs.

From "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri

After receiving inquiries from Reuters, the ACS in early December revised its website to remove the assurance that cosmetic talcs are free of asbestos.

From Reuters ● Dec. 14, 2018

Food and Drug Administration was considering a limit on asbestos in talcs.

From Reuters ● Dec. 14, 2018

Wide-shouldered, hairy-chested William Nassaur, whose Courtley, Ltd. shaving soaps, lotions, talcs, and bubble baths had already deodorized and sweetened thousands of U.S. males, got set last week to waft his perfume worldwide.

From Time Magazine Archive

Then the three brothers took, each of them, a princess with him on his horse, and they all rode together back to the old King, telling talcs and singing songs as they went.

From Old Peter's Russian Tales by Dmitri Mitrokhin

"How can you ask that? What do you imagine I'm doing? I am talcing care of your brother. I am taking care of Bran."

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin

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Related Words

• crumb
• dust

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