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corundum
6 dictionary results for: corundum
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
co·run·dum       [kuh-ruhn-duhm] Pronunciation Key
–noun
a common mineral, aluminum oxide, Al2O3, notable for its hardness: transparent varieties, as sapphire and ruby, are used as gems, other varieties as abrasives: often made synthetically.
[Origin: 1720–30; < Tamil kuruntam; akin to Skt kuruvinda ruby]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
co·run·dum       (kə-rŭn'dəm)  Pronunciation Key 
n.   An extremely hard mineral, aluminum oxide, Al2O3, sometimes containing iron, magnesia, or silica, that occurs in gem varieties such as ruby and sapphire and in a common black, brown, or blue form used chiefly in abrasives.


[Tamil kuruntam.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
corundum 
1728, from Anglo-Ind., from Tamil kurundam "ruby sapphire" (Skt. kuruvinda).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
corundum

noun
very hard mineral used as an abrasive [syn: corundom] 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
corundum       (kə-rŭn'dəm)  Pronunciation Key 
An extremely hard mineral occurring in many colors, either as shapeless grains or as rhombohedral crystals. It also occurs in gem varieties such as ruby and sapphire and in a dark-colored variety that is used for polishing and scraping. Corundum is found in igneous and carbonate rocks. Chemical formula: Al2O3.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Corundum

Co*run"dum\ (k?-r?n"d?m), n.; pl. Corundums (-d?mz). [Also corindon.] [From Hind. kurand corundum stone.] (Min.) The earth alumina, as found native in a crystalline state, including sapphire, which is the fine blue variety; the oriental ruby, or red sapphire; the oriental amethyst, or purple sapphire; and adamantine spar, the hair-brown variety. It is the hardest substance found native, next to the diamond.

Note: The name corundum is sometimes restricted to the non-transparent or coarser kinds. Emery is a dark-colored granular variety, usually admixed with magnetic iron ore.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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