Pyrites
[pai'raiti:z]
Definition
(noun.) any of various metallic-looking sulfides (of which pyrite is the commonest).
Checker: Nathan--From WordNet
Definition
(pl. ) of Pyrite
(n.) A name given to a number of metallic minerals, sulphides of iron, copper, cobalt, nickel, and tin, of a white or yellowish color.
Checker: Zelig
Definition
n. a term applied to a large class of mineral compounds of metals with sulphur or with arsenic or with both—crystalline hard generally brittle and frequently yellow.—adjs. Pyritā′ceous; Pyrit′ic -al; Pyritif′erous.—v.t. Pyr′itise to convert into pyrites.—n. Pyritol′ogy knowledge of pyrites.—adj. Pyr′itous.
Edited by Eileen
Examples
- The Kimberlite of the Jagersfontein mine is free from pyrites, and to that is attributed the remarkable brilliancy and purity of color for which the diamonds of this mine are celebrated. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- In the second case, the heat is produced by a kind of fermentation; and in the third, by the pyrites of the coal rapidly absorbing and combining with the oxygen of the air. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
Typist: Penelope