amalgam
pronunciation
How to pronounce amalgam in British English:
UK [əˈmælgəm]
How to pronounce amalgam in American English:
US [əˈmælɡəm]
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- Noun:
- an alloy of mercury with another metal (usually silver) used by dentists to fill cavities in teeth; except for iron and platinum all metals dissolve in mercury and chemists refer to the resulting mercury mixtures as amalgams
- a combination or blend of diverse things
Word Origin
- amalgam (n.)
- c. 1400, "blend of mercury with another metal; soft mass formed by chemical manipulation," from Old French amalgame or directly from Medieval Latin amalgama, "alloy of mercury (especially with gold or silver)," an alchemists' word, perhaps an alteration of Latin malagma "poultice, plaster," probably from Arabic al-malgham "an emollient poultice or unguent for sores (especially warm)" [Francis Johnson, "A Dictionary of Persian, Arabic, and English"], perhaps from Greek malagma "softening substance," from malassein "to soften," from malakos "soft."
Example
- 1. Aim : To study the effects of using bonding resin onto the entire cavity surface before filling with amalgam .
- 2. Effect of surface roughness on the fracture resistance of amalgam
- 3. Clinical evaluation of bonded amalgam restorations using different adhesive materials
- 4. Experimental study of dental amalgam substitutes against microleakage in vitro
- 5. This sequel to Mandino\'s1967 self-help classic features the same amalgam of biblical motifs and secular values as its predecessor .