Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Popular Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

porcelaneous

 - 4 dictionary results

por⋅ce⋅lain

  [pawr-suh-lin, pohr-; pawrs-lin, pohrs-]
Use porcelaneous in a Sentence
–noun
1. a strong, vitreous, translucent ceramic material, biscuit-fired at a low temperature, the glaze then fired at a very high temperature.
2. ware made from this.
Origin:
1520–30; < F porcelaine < It porcellana orig., a type of cowry shell, appar. likened to the vulva of a sow, n. use of fem. of porcellano of a young sow, equiv. to porcell(a), dim. of porca sow (see pork, -elle ) + -ano -an

Related forms:
por⋅ce⋅la⋅ne⋅ous, por⋅cel⋅la⋅ne⋅ous  [pawr-suh-ley-nee-uhs, pohr-] , adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To porcelaneous
por·ce·lain   (pôr'sə-lĭn, pōr'-, pôrs'lĭn, pōrs'-)   
n.  

  1. A hard, white, translucent ceramic made by firing a pure clay and then glazing it with variously colored fusible materials; china.

  2. An object made of this substance.


[French porcelaine, cowry shell, porcelain, from Old French, from Old Italian porcellana, from feminine of porcellano, of a young sow (from the shell's resemblance to a pig's back), from porcella, young sow, diminutive of porca, sow, from Latin, feminine of porcus, pig; see porko- in Indo-European roots.]
por'ce·la'ne·ous (-lā'nē-əs) adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

porcelain 
c.1530, from M.Fr. porcelaine, from It. porcellana "porcelain" (13c.), lit. "cowrie shell," the chinaware so called from resemblance to the shiny surface of the shells. The shell's name in It. is from porcella "young sow," fem. of L. porcellus "young pig," dim. of porculus "piglet," dim. of porcus "pig." Supposedly the shells were so called because the shape of the orifice reminded someone of the vaginas of pigs.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: por·ce·lain
Pronunciation: 'pOr-s(&-)l&n, 'por-
Function: noun
: a hard, fine-grained, nonporous, and usually translucentand white ceramic ware that consists essentially of kaolin, quartz, and feldspar and that has many uses in dentistry
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see porcelaneous on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way