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calomel

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cal⋅o⋅mel

[kal-uh-mel, -muhl]
–noun Pharmacology.
a white, tasteless powder, Hg2Cl2, used chiefly as a purgative and fungicide.
Also called mercurous chloride.


Origin:
1670–80; < NL calomelas coined from Gk kaló(s) fair + mélas black; allegedly so called because its original preparation involved turning black powder into white
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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cal·o·mel   (kāl'ə-měl', -məl)   
n.  A colorless, white or brown tasteless compound, Hg2Cl2, used as a purgative and insecticide. Also called mercurous chloride.

[Probably from New Latin calomelās : Greek kalos, beautiful + melās, black.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

calomel 
1676, "mercurous chloride," from Fr. calomel, supposedly from Gk. kalos "fair" + melas "black," but as the powder is yellowish-white this seems difficult.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: cal·o·mel
Pronunciation: 'kal-&-m&l, -"mel
Function: noun
: a white tasteless compound Hg2Cl2 usedespecially as a fungicide and insecticide and occas. in medicine as a purgative called also mercurous chloride
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

calomel cal·o·mel (kāl'ə-měl', -məl)
n.
A colorless, white or brown tasteless compound used as a purgative and an insecticide. Also called mercurous chloride.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Encyclopedia

calomel

a very heavy, soft, white, sweetish-tasting halide mineral, formed by the alteration of other mercury minerals, such as cinnabar or amalgams. Calomel is found together with native mercury, cinnabar, calcite, limonite, and clay, at Moschellandsberg, Ger.; Zimapan, Mexico; and Brewster county, Texas, U.S. For detailed physical properties, see halide mineral (table)

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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