opal
UK /ˈəʊpəl/ · US /ˈoʊpəl/ noun, proper noun
Forms opals
- noun (mineralogy) A mineral consisting, like quartz, of silica, but inferior to quartz in hardness and specific gravity, of the chemical formula SiO₂·nH₂O.
- noun (gemology) A precious gem, an iridescent gemstone found in the opal-silica mineral substrate (potch)
- noun The colour of opal: any shade of blue with bright flecks of other colours, such as white, yellow, and red.
- noun (biology, genetics, biochemistry) A colloquial name used in molecular biology referring to a particular stop codon sequence, "UGA."
- noun Any of various lycaenid butterflies of the genus Nesolycaena.
- proper noun A unisex given name from English from the precious stone, invented in the nineteenth century.
- proper noun A female given name from English from the precious stone, invented in the nineteenth century.
- proper noun (rare) A male given name from English from the precious stone, invented in the nineteenth century.
- proper noun (Australia) A type of petrol made by British Petroleum designed to be unable to be used for petrol sniffing.
- proper noun A hamlet in Alberta, Canada.
- proper noun A census-designated place in Virginia.
- proper noun A town in Wyoming.
Etymology
In Florio’s A World of Words 1598 as opale, from French opale, from Latin opalus, from Byzantine Greek ὀπάλλιος (opállios), from Sanskrit उपल (upala, “gem, stone”), from उपरि (upári, “the upper millstone”). Distantly related to over.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A mineral consisting, like quartz, of silica, but inferior to quartz in hardness and specific gravity.
Etymology [L. opalus: cf. Gr. upala a rock, stone, precious stone: cf. F. opale.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “opal”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details