vesuvianite

[vuh-soo-vee-uh-nahyt]

ve·su·vi·an·ite

[vuh-soo-vee-uh-nahyt]
noun
a mineral, chiefly a hydrous silicate of calcium and aluminum, commonly in tetragonal crystals and usually of a brown to green color; idocrase.

Origin:
1885–90; Vesuvian + -ite1
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Vesuvianite has a plethora of syllables.
So is dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane. Does it mean:
a white, crystalline, water-insoluble solid, C14H9Cl5, usually derived from chloral by reaction with chlorobenzene in the presence of fuming sulfuric acid: used as an insecticide and as a scabicide and pediculicide: agricultural use prohibited in the U.S.
the estimation of something as valueless (encountered mainly as an example of one of the longest words in the English language).
Collins
World English Dictionary
vesuvianite (vɪˈsuːvɪəˌnaɪt)
 
n
idocrase, Also called: vesuvian a green, brown, or yellow mineral consisting of a hydrated silicate of calcium, magnesium, iron, and aluminium: it occurs as tetragonal crystals in limestones and is used as a gemstone. Formula: Ca10(Mg,Fe)2Al4Si9O34(OH)4
 
[C19: first found in the lava of Vesuvius]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

vesuvianite

common silicate mineral that occurs in crystalline limestones near their contacts with igneous rocks, and in beds of marble and calcsilicate granulite that are associated with gneiss and mica schist. Fine glassy crystals coloured yellow, green, or brown have been found in the Ala Valley in the Piedmont, and on Mte. Somma, Italy; the Vilyuy River, Siberia; Christiansand, Nor.; Litchfield, Quebec; and Auburn, Maine, Amity, N.Y., and Franklin, N.J. For chemical formula and detailed physical properties, see silicate mineral (table)

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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