quartz
one of the commonest minerals, silicon dioxide, SiO2, having many varieties that differ in color, luster, etc., and occurring either in masses (as agate, bloodstone, chalcedony, jasper, etc.) or in crystals (as rock crystal, amethyst, citrine, etc.): the chief constituent of sand and sandstone, and an important constituent of many other rocks. It is piezoelectric and used to control the frequencies of radio transmitters.
Origin of quartz
1Other words from quartz
- quartz·ose [kwawrt-sohs], /ˈkwɔrt soʊs/, quartz·ous [kwawrt-suhs], /ˈkwɔrt səs/, adjective
Words that may be confused with quartz
- quarts, quartz
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use quartz in a sentence
The quartz sand may well have been derived from the granitic quartzes, but that is an uncertain matter.
On the find of gold in the quartzes and the metal-veins and lodes.
In the quarries and the crystals, and the quartzes, full of gold.
British Dictionary definitions for quartz
/ (kwɔːts) /
a colourless mineral often tinted by impurities, found in igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks. It is used in the manufacture of glass, abrasives, and cement, and also as a gemstone; the violet-purple variety is amethyst, the brown variety is cairngorm, the yellow variety is citrine, and the pink variety is rose quartz. Composition: silicon dioxide. Formula: SiO 2 . Crystal structure: hexagonal
short for quartz glass
Origin of quartz
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for quartz
[ kwôrts ]
A hard, transparent trigonal mineral that, after feldspar, is the most common mineral on the surface of the Earth. It occurs as a component of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks as well as in a variety of other forms such as rock crystal, flint, and agate. Some crystalline forms, such as amethyst, are considered gemstones. Chemical formula: SiO2.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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