gypsum
pronunciation
How to pronounce gypsum in British English:
UK [ˈdʒɪpsəm]
How to pronounce gypsum in American English:
US [ˈdʒɪpsəm]
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- Noun:
- a common white or colorless mineral (hydrated calcium sulphate) used to make cements and plasters (especially plaster of Paris)
Word Origin
- gypsum
- gypsum: [17] The word gypsum originated among the Semitic languages, with a relative or ancestor of Arabic jibs and Hebrew gephes ‘plaster’. Greek adopted this unknown form as gúpsos, which passed into Latin as gypsum. (An Italian descendant of gypsum is gesso ‘plaster’, borrowed by English in the 16th century for ‘plaster as a surface for painting on’.)=> gesso
- gypsum (n.)
- substance (hydrated calcium sulphate) used in making plaster, late 14c., from Latin gypsum, from Greek gypsos "chalk," according to Klein, a word perhaps of Semitic origin (compare Arabic jibs, Hebrew gephes "plaster").
Example
- 1. The agency 's investigators visited gypsum mines and drywall facilities in china in august .
- 2. Typically , builders use domestically produced drywall , which is made mainly from the mineral gypsum .
- 3. The long-awaited special ingredients include : light malt extract , amber crystal malt , honey , gypsum , yeast and corn sugar .
- 4. To achieve this , the basic ' skeleton ' of the building , made of light steel , is carefully designed for maximum strength , while cheaper lightweight materials like plywood and gypsum board are used for the walls in place of concrete , wood or bricks .