chrysolite

English

Etymology

From Middle English crisolite, from Old French crisolite, from Medieval Latin crisolitus, Latin chrȳsolithus, from Ancient Greek χρῡσόλιθος (khrūsólithos), from χρῡσός (khrūsós, “gold”) + λίθος (líthos, “stone”). By surface analysis, chryso- (“pertaining to gold”) +‎ -lite (“pertaining to rocks, minerals”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈkɹɪs.əˌlaɪt/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈkɹɪs.əˌlaɪt/

Noun

chrysolite (countable and uncountable, plural chrysolites)

1. (mineralogy) Originally, any of various green-coloured gems; later specifically peridot.
   • 1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC, partition II, section 4, member 1, subsection iii:

     Fran. Rueus […] say as much of the chrysolite, a friend of wisdome, an enemy to folly.

   • 1920, H. P. Lovecraft, The Doom that Came to Sarnath:

     And before he died, Taran-Ish had scrawled upon the altar of chrysolite with coarse shaky strokes the sign of DOOM.

   • 1936, Rollo Ahmed, The Black Art, London: Long, page 155:

     A piece of marigold or bay leaf was imbedded in the metal, and over it a carbuncle or chrysolite was placed.

Derived terms

chrysolite commune, chrysolite de Saxe, chrysolite du Brésil, chrysolite du cap, iron chrysolite, iron manganese chrysolite, chrysolite of Brazil, chrysolite ordinaire, chrysolite orientale, titaniferous chrysolite, white chrysolite, chrysolite des volcans

Translations

a gemstone

• Arabic: زَبَرْجَد (ar) m (zabarjad)
• Armenian: ոսկեքար (hy) (oskekʻar)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 橄欖石 / 橄榄石 (zh) (gǎnlǎnshí)

• Finnish: krysoliitti
• French: chrysolithe (fr) f, chrysolite (fr) f
• Georgian: ქრიზოლითი (ka) (krizoliti)

  Old Georgian: ოქროქვაჲ (okrokvay)

• German: crysolit, crysolith
• Greek:

  Ancient: χρυσόλιθος m (khrusólithos)

• Indonesian: krisolit (id)
• Irish: cloch óir
• Kazakh: зүбаржат (zübarjat), зүбәржад (zübärjad), зұбаржат (zūbarjat), зәбіржат (zäbırjat), зыбыржат (zybyrjat)
• Maori: karihorita
• Spanish: chrysolita, peridoto (es) m, crisólito (es) m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: krysolitt m

• Sundanese: krisolit

Further reading

• David Barthelmy (1997–2025) “Chrysolite”, in Webmineral Mineralogy Database.
• “chrysolite”, in Mindat.org‎^[1], Hudson Institute of Mineralogy, 2000–2025.

Anagrams

• chrysotile

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin chrȳsolithus, from Ancient Greek χρυσόλιθος (khrusólithos), from χρυσός (khrusós, “gold”) + λίθος (líthos, “rock”). See also Old French crisolite.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kʁi.zɔ.lit/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

chrysolite f (plural chrysolites)

1. (mineralogy) chrysolite [from c. 1600]
   1. (obsolete) gems such as chrysoberyl, sapphire, topaz, or tourmaline (any of various gemstones with a golden, and especially greenish) tint [until 19th century]
   2. peridot, prehnite, or apatite

Alternative forms

• chrysolithe

Synonyms

• (peridot): chrysolite des volcans
• (prehnite): chrysolite du Cap
• (apatite): chrysolithe ordinaire

Further reading

• “chrysolite”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Latin

Noun

chrȳsolite

1. vocative singular of chrȳsolitus