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dolomite

 - 3 dictionary results

do⋅lo⋅mite

[doh-luh-mahyt, dol-uh-]
–noun
1. a very common mineral, calcium magnesium carbonate, CaMg(CO3)2, occurring in crystals and in masses.
2. a rock consisting essentially or largely of this mineral.

Origin:
1785–95; < F, named after D. de Dolom(ieu) (1750–1801), French mineralogist; see -ite 1


dol⋅o⋅mit⋅ic [dol-uh-mit-ik] , adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To dolomite
dol·o·mite   (dō'lə-mīt', dŏl'ə-)   
n.  
  1. A white or light-colored mineral, essentially CaMg(CO3)2, used in fertilizer, as a furnace refractory, and as a construction and ceramic material.

  2. A magnesia-rich sedimentary rock resembling limestone.


[French, after Déodat de Dolomieu (1750-1801), French geologist.]
dol'o·mit'ic (-mĭt'ĭk) adj., dol'o·mit'i·za'tion (-mĭt'ĭ-zā'shən) n., dol'o·mit·ize' (-mĭ-tīz') v.
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

dolomite 
1794, named for Fr. geologist Déodat De Gratet De Dolomieu (1750-1801) who described the rock in his study of the Alps (1791).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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