Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The pearly internal layer of certain mollusk shells, used to make decorative objects.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun The nacreous inner layer of the shell of various bivalve mollusks, as of the pearl-oyster, when hard, silvery, iridescent, or otherwise sufficiently beautiful to have commercial value; nacre.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Zoöl.) The hard, iridescent, pearly internal layer of several kinds of shells, esp. of pearl oysters, river mussels, and the abalone shells; nacre. See
pearl .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Made from or looking like mother-of-pearl;
iridescent orpearly . - noun The hard pearly inner layer of certain
mollusk shells;nacre .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun the iridescent internal layer of a mollusk shell
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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It was very Wild West, with mother-of-pearl grips and a worn holster.
Rogue Oracle 2011
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Reality hit when they started looking for a fine cotton fabric and mother-of-pearl buttons.
Polo Puzzle: What Goes Into a $155 Price Tag? Christina Binkley 2012
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Guitars still get a little adventurous (though less so than in the heyday of 70s metal); accordions still break out a bonanza of mother-of-pearl now and then, as does the occasional drum set.
Archive 2009-06-01 Matthew Guerrieri 2009
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They are groups of mainly aged "Cockney" Londoners who sew mother-of-pearl buttons on their clothes in lavish designs and sing sentimental pub songs.
A Peacemaker Tries to Reunite London's Warring 'Pearlies' Alistair MacDonald 2011
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From the kinky locks of one of the naked young men he drew a hand-carved, fine-toothed comb, the lofty back of which was inlaid with mother-of-pearl, which he later sold in Sydney to a curio shop for eight shillings.
CHAPTER III 2010
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Guitars still get a little adventurous (though less so than in the heyday of 70s metal); accordions still break out a bonanza of mother-of-pearl now and then, as does the occasional drum set.
Amadeus Beaux-Arts Matthew Guerrieri 2009
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The line began with mother-of-pearl charm bracelets, which Ms. Bidermann still makes.
Making It: Aur Monika Anderson 2010
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Colorful coat buttons on cards, tiny four-holed mother-of-pearl buttons.
19__, What I Wanted Catherine Davis 2011
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Photographs by Kurt Wilberding Marco Bicego Jaipur bangle crafted in 18-karat yellow gold with citrine and mother-of-pearl, $890, and Jaipur bangle crafted in 18-karat yellow gold with citrine and blue topaz, $890 each, Saks, 877-551-7257
More Citrine Gems 2010
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Mr. Jolly estimates he has sewn 12,000 mother-of-pearl buttons onto a single suit, some of which spell out his title across his back: the Pearly King of Crystal Palace.
A Peacemaker Tries to Reunite London's Warring 'Pearlies' Alistair MacDonald 2011
treeseed commented on the word mother-of-pearl
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
noun
Date: circa 1510
: the hard pearly iridescent substance forming the inner layer of a mollusk shell
January 30, 2008