quartz
pronunciation
How to pronounce quartz in British English:
UK [kwɔːts]
How to pronounce quartz in American English:
US [kwɔːrts]
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- Noun:
- colorless glass made of almost pure silica
- a hard glossy mineral consisting of silicon dioxide in crystal form; present in most rocks (especially sandstone and granite); yellow sand is quartz with iron oxide impurities
Word Origin
- quartz (n.)
- "silicon dioxide," 1756, from German Quarz, Zwarc "rock crystal," from Middle High German twarc, probably from a West Slavic source, compare Czech tvrdy, Polish twardy "quartz," noun uses of an adjective meaning "hard," from Old Church Slavonic tvrudu "hard," from Proto-Slavic *tvrd-, from PIE *(s)twer- "to grasp, hold; hard."
Example
- 1. He gives the counter-example of a quartz crystal .
- 2. Both shatter cones and shocked quartz are considered strong evidence of meteorite impacts .
- 3. Salt , snowflakes , and the quartz in your watch are all crystals .
- 4. It is mainly used for medium and fine crushing , especially in crushing iron ore and quartz stone .
- 5. In their natural state , oil sands are made of quartz sand covered by layers of water and bitumen .