Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A fine-grained impure corundum used for grinding and polishing.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A granular mineral substance belonging to the species corundum, which when pure consists of alumina with slight traces of various metallic oxids. Emery, however, is in general not pure corundum, but mechanically mixed with more or less magnetite or hematite. It occurs in very hard nodules or amorphous masses in various parts of the world, but the chief supply comes from Asia Minor and the Grecian archipelago. Its principal use is in grinding and polishing glass, stone, and metal surfaces. For use the stone is usually crushed to a power of varying degrees of fineness, which is attached as a coating to paper, cloth, wood, etc. The solid stone itself, however, is sometimes used, worked into suitable shape.
- To coat or cover with emery, as in making emery-cloth, emery-paper, or the like.
- To rub or polish with emery or with emery-paper, emery-cloth, etc.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Min.) Corundum in the form of grains or powder, used in the arts for grinding and polishing hard substances. Native emery is mixed with more or less magnetic iron. See the Note under corundum.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a hard grey-black mineral consisting of corundum and either hematite or magnetite; used as an abrasive (especially as a coating on paper)
Etymologies
- From French émeri, from Old French esmeril, from Late Latin smericulum, from Ancient Greek σμῆρις (smēris, "powder used for polishing") (alternative spelling: σμύρις (smuris)). (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, from Old French emeri, emeril, from Late Latin smericulum, from Greek smiris. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Still another variety, greyish-black and generally associated with hæmatite iron ore, is called emery, and, when ground in different degrees of fineness, is so well known by its general use as a polishing medium as to need no description.”
“Herein also is the kind of corundum known as emery, and esteemed for its polishing properties.”
“Several authors mention the use of emery, which technically is a fine sand made from a very hard form of aluminum oxide (corundum) which has a Mohs scale hardness of 9, but the term has been used loosely as "emery" per se was not available in Egypt.”
Interactive Dig Hierakonpolis - Hierakonpolis 2009 - Field Note 3
“Other ingredients, such as emery, may also be added in the matrix; and”
“These prizes should be Hallow-e'en souvenirs, such as emery cushions of silk representing tomatoes, radishes, apples, pears, pickles; or pen-wipers representing brooms, bats, cats, witches, etc. FLOUR TEST”
“In safety matches _red_ phosphorus, an oxidizing agent, and some gritty material such as emery is placed on the side of the box, while the match tip is provided as before with an oxidizing agent and an easily oxidized substance, usually antimony sulphide.”
“These prizes should be Hallow-e'en souvenirs, such as emery cushions of silk representing tomatoes, radishes, apples, pears, pickles; or pen-wipers representing brooms, bats, cats, witches, etc. CANDLE AND APPLE”
“If it is to be made into polished plate it must be ground down first with sand and water; then ground smoother still with a coarse kind of emery stone and water; next ground again with water and powdered emery stone.”
“The diamond was not very well known among the ancients; and if we add to this reason the similarity between the words smiris, the Egyptian asmir, "emery", a species of corindon used to polish precious stones, and shmyr, the Hebrew word supposed to mean the diamond, we may conclude with probability that the limpid corindon was intended.”
“What is known as emery is the more or less impure product from the same source.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘emery’.
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IMCO - EU nomenclature
includes words of the "Prodcom list"
abaca, abdominal, abrasive, absorbent, absorber, accelerator, accessory, account book, accumulator, acebutolol, acetaldehyde, acetamide and 4515 more...
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wallace
Remington, Windsor, prorector, wen, aver, mottle, seltzer, tepee, lapidary, effete, sotto, presbyopia and 355 more...
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Scrabble Names
Given names that were acceptable for play the last time I checked the OWL.
kris, ray, barb, morris, kat, mark, maria, erica, marge, mason, hunter, hazel and 168 more...
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going in circles
doldrums, wake, tide, mast, ink, sea, imago, book, journal, chapter, novel, page and 14 more...
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Infinite Jest
Words to remember from DFW's "Infinite Jest"
wen, matriculation, circumflex, lapidary, effete, sotto, hypertrophy, presbyopic, ideogram, pinion, parquet, nelson and 152 more...
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sionnach's Words
contumely, fomite, holmgang, poltroon, eleemosynary, obsidian, nugatory, grindcore, felch, recrudescent, pyx, parenteral and 3271 more...
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Orphanage of neglected words, starved...
The words on this list need to get out more. Seriously, I can't believe I'm the only person listing them. Won't you please consider offering them a playdate with some of your words? Surely you have...
grog blossom, hellspawn, hellespont, embryology, hamfisted, topkapi, footling, fancier, lindisfarne, krispy kreme, mortal coil, byline and 29 more...
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DFW
apocope, bolection, reglet, dipsomania, quincunx, varicoceles, simpatico, aleatory, experialist, agnate, pedalferrous, fulvous and 80 more...
Tweets
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