corundum

English

Corundum

Etymology

From Tamil குருந்தம் (kuruntam, ruby, sapphire) First attested in the early 18th century.

Pronunciation

  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /kəˈɹʌn.dəm/
  • (file)

Noun

corundum (countable and uncountable, plural corundums)

  1. (mineralogy) An extremely hard mineral, a form of aluminum oxide with the chemical formula Al2O3, that occurs in the form of the gemstones sapphire and ruby; it is used as an abrasive.

Derived terms

Translations

Further reading

  • David Barthelmy (1997–2024) “Corundum”, in Webmineral Mineralogy Database.
  • corundum”, in Mindat.org, Hudson Institute of Mineralogy, 2000–2024.
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