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copper

 [kop-er]   Example Sentences Origin

cop·per

1   [kop-er]
noun
1.
a malleable, ductile, metallic element having a characteristic reddish-brown color: used in large quantities as an electrical conductor and in the manufacture of alloys, as brass and bronze. Symbol: Cu; atomic weight: 63.54; atomic number: 29; specific gravity: 8.92 at 20°C.
2.
a metallic reddish brown.
3.
a coin composed of copper, bronze, or the like, as the U.S. cent or the British penny.
4.
any of several butterflies of the family Lycaenidae, as Lycaena hypophleas (American copper), having copper-colored wings spotted and edged with black.
5.
a container made of copper.
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6.
a tool partly or wholly made of copper: a soldering copper.
7.
British. a large kettle, now usually made of iron, used for cooking or to boil laundry.
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adjective
8.
made of copper: copper kettles.
9.
reddish-brown; coppery: The copper sun sank into the sea.

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Copper is one of our favorite verbs.
So is skedaddle. Does it mean:
to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly.
to run away hurriedly; flee.
LEARN MORE FUN, UNUSUAL VERBS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
verb (used with object)
10.
to cover, coat, or sheathe with copper.
11.
Informal. hedge (def. 6).
Origin:
before 1000; Middle English coper, Old English coper, copor (cognate with Old Norse koparr, German Kupfer) < Late Latin cuprum, for Latin (aes) Cyprium Cyprian (metal)
Example Sentences
  • Ohm's law is useful to explain currents in copper wires.
  • The rubbery shaft connecting the two plugs bends, but is thick enough that the copper strands within remain protected.
  • Aluminium and copper still comprise more than three-quarters of the metals index.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged

cop·per

2   [kop-er]
noun Slang.
a police officer.
Origin:
1840–50, Americanism; perhaps cop1 + -er1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To copper
Collins
World English Dictionary
copper1 (ˈkɒpə)
 
—n
1.  a.  a malleable ductile reddish metallic element occurring as the free metal, copper glance, and copper pyrites: used as an electrical and thermal conductor and in such alloys as brass and bronze. Symbol: Cu; atomic no: 29; atomic wt: 63.546; valency: 1 or 2; relative density: 8.96; melting pt: 1084.87±+0.2°C; boiling pt: 2563°CRelated: cupric, cuprous, cupro-
 b.  (as modifier): a copper coin
2.  a.  the reddish-brown colour of copper
 b.  (as adjective): copper hair
3.  informal any copper or bronze coin
4.  chiefly (Brit) a large vessel, formerly of copper, used for boiling or washing
5.  any of various small widely distributed butterflies of the genera Lycaena, Heodes, etc, typically having reddish-brown wings: family Lycaenidae
 
—vb
6.  (tr) to coat or cover with copper
 
Related: cupric, cuprous, cupro-
 
[Old English coper, from Latin Cyprium aes Cyprian metal, from Greek Kupris Cyprus]
 
'coppery1
 
—adj

copper2 (ˈkɒpə)
 
—n
a slang word for policeman Often shortened to: cop
 
[C19: from cop1 (vb) + -er1]

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

copper
O.E. coper, from W.Gmc. *kupar, from L.L. cuprum, contraction of L. Cyprium (æs) "Cyprian (metal)," after Gk. Kyprios "Cyprus" (see Cyprus). L. æs was originally "copper," but this was extended to its alloy with tin, bronze, and as this was far more extensively
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used than pure copper, the word's primary sense shifted to the alloy and a new word evolved for "copper," from the Latin form of the name of the island of Cyprus, where copper was mined. Aes passed into Gmc. (which originally did not distinguish copper from its alloys) and became Eng. ore (q.v.).
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

copper cop·per (kŏp'ər)
n.
Symbol Cu
A ductile malleable metallic element that is an excellent conductor of heat and electricity and is used for electrical wiring, water piping, and corrosion-resistant parts, either pure or in alloys such as brass and bronze. Atomic number 29; atomic weight 63.546; melting point 1,085°C; boiling point 2,562°C; specific gravity 8.96; valence 1, 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
copper   (kŏp'ər)  Pronunciation Key 
Symbol Cu
A reddish-brown, ductile, malleable metallic element that is an excellent conductor of heat and electricity. It is widely used for electrical wires, water pipes, and rust-resistant parts, either in its pure form or in alloys such as brass and bronze. Atomic number 29; atomic weight 63.546; melting point 1,083°C; boiling point 2,595°C; specific gravity 8.96; valence 1, 2. See Periodic Table. See Note at element.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary

copper definition


  1. n.
    a police officer. (Originally underworld. Because the coppercops, pinches, nabs or takes = arrests. See also cop.) : See that copper over there? He busted me once.
  2. n.
    money. (From copper penny. See also rivets.) : How much copper you got on you?
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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FOLDOC
Computing Dictionary

copper definition


Conventional electrical network cable with a core conductor of copper (or aluminium!)
Opposed to light pipe or, say, a short-range microwave link.
[Jargon File]
(1994-11-30)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
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Easton
Bible Dictionary

Copper definition


derived from the Greek kupros (the island of Cyprus), called "Cyprian brass," occurs only in the Authorized Version in Ezra 8:27. Elsewhere the Hebrew word (nehosheth) is improperly rendered "brass," and sometimes "steel" (2 Sam. 22:35; Jer. 15:12). The "bow of steel" (Job 20:24; Ps. 18:34) should have been "bow of copper" (or "brass," as in the R.V.). The vessels of "fine copper" of Ezra 8:27 were probably similar to those of "bright brass" mentioned in 1 Kings 7:45; Dan. 10:6. Tubal-cain was the first artificer in brass and iron (Gen. 4:22). Hiram was noted as a worker in brass (1 Kings 7:14). Copper abounded in Palestine (Deut. 8:9; Isa. 60:17; 1 Chr. 22:3, 14). All sorts of vessels in the tabernacle and the temple were made of it (Lev. 6:28; Num. 16:39; 2 Chr. 4:16; Ezra 8:27); also weapons of war (1 Sam. 17:5, 6, 38; 2 Sam. 21:16). Iron is mentioned only four times (Gen. 4:22; Lev. 26:19; Num. 31:22; 35:16) in the first four books of Moses, while copper (rendered "brass") is mentioned forty times. (See BRASS.) We find mention of Alexander (q.v.), a "coppersmith" of Ephesus (2 Tim. 4:14).

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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