zinc

[zingk]
noun
1.
Chemistry. a ductile, bluish-white metallic element: used in making galvanized iron, brass, and other alloys, and as an element in voltaic cells. Symbol: Zn; atomic weight: 65.37; atomic number: 30; specific gravity: 7.14 at 20°C.
2.
a piece of this metal used as an element in a voltaic cell.
verb (used with object), zincked or zinced [zingkt] , zinck·ing or zinc·ing [zing-king] .
3.
to coat or cover with zinc.
Origin:
1635–45; < German Zink, perhaps derivative of Zinke(n) prong, tine, from the spikelike form it takes in a furnace

Related forms
zinck·y, zinc·y, zink·y, adjective
zinc·oid, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Zinc is always a great word to know.
So is scrub. Does it mean:
to remove impurities from a gas by chemical means, as sulfur dioxide from smokestack gas or carbon dioxide from exhaled air in life-support packs
any of the electronegative elements, fluorine, chlorine, iodine, bromine, and astatine, that form binary salts by direct union with metals
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Collins
World English Dictionary
zinc (zɪŋk) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  a brittle bluish-white metallic element that becomes coated with a corrosion-resistant layer in moist air and occurs chiefly in sphalerite and smithsonite. It is a constituent of several alloys, esp brass and nickel-silver, and is used in die-casting, galvanizing metals, and in battery electrodes. Symbol: Zn; atomic no: 30; atomic wt: 65.39; valency: 2; relative density: 7.133; melting pt: 419.58°C; boiling pt: 907°C
2.  informal corrugated galvanized iron
 
[C17: from German Zink, perhaps from Zinke prong, from its jagged appearance in the furnace]
 
'zincic
 
—adj
 
'zincous
 
—adj
 
'zincoid
 
—adj
 
'zincky
 
—adj
 
'zincy
 
—adj
 
'zinky
 
—adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

zinc
1651, from Ger. Zink, perhaps related to Zinke "prong, point;" said to have been used first by Paracelsus (c.1526) on analogy of the form of its crystals after smelting. Zinke is from O.H.G. zint "a point, jag," from P.Gmc. *tindja "tine" (cf. O.N. tindr "point, top, summit," O.E. tind "prong, spike;"
cf. tine).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

zinc (zĭngk)
n.
Symbol Zn
A metallic element that is brittle at room temperature but becomes malleable when heated. Atomic number 30; atomic weight 65.39; melting point 419.5°C; boiling point 907°C; specific gravity 7.133 (25°C); valence 2.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
zinc   (zĭngk)  Pronunciation Key 
Symbol Zn
A shiny, bluish-white metallic element that is brittle at room temperature but is malleable when heated. It is used in alloys such as brass and bronze, as a coating for iron and steel, and in various household objects. Zinc is essential to human and animal growth. Atomic number 30; atomic weight 65.39; melting point 419.4°C; boiling point 907°C; specific gravity 7.133 (25°C); valence 2. See Periodic Table.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Example sentences
Space-saving zinc-air power cells, for example, use air to activate a zinc
  anode.
Citrus may suffer from chlorosis due to iron, manganese, or zinc deficiency.
Whole grain foods leavened with yeast have less phytate, which can inhibit the
  absorption of calcium, iron and zinc.
The decor around this horseshoe-shaped zinc bar is dated, but the dishes are
  modern and often served in innovative combinations.
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