[tan-tl-ahyt] 
| a black, crystalline mineral, iron tantalate, (Fe, Mn) Ta2O6, the principal ore of tantalum and an end member of a series of solid solutions in which manganese and niobium combine to form columbite. |
| tan·ta·lite (tān'tə-līt') n. A black to red-brown mineral, (Fe,Mn)(Ta,Nb)2O6, distinguished from columbite by the predominance of tantalum over niobium and used as an ore of both elements. [tantal(um) + -ite1.] |
tlˌaɪt