What does "aventurine" mean?
A kind of brownish glass containing gold-coloured spangles.
Aventurine
/əˈvɛn.t͡ʃə.ɹɪn/ noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A kind of brownish glass containing gold-coloured spangles.
- Grammar: aventurine is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: aventurine glass, aventurine quartz, glitter glass, glitter quartz.
- Useful contrasts: opaque glass, plain glass, plain quartz.
- Usage evidence: [pages 244–245] Aventurine is a brown glass flux, containing very small glittering particles, which give it a peculiarly glittering appearance. It was formerly manufactured into objects of art and ornament at Murano near Venice. [...] The statements which are found respecting it in technological works, according to which it is obtained by fusing down with glass minute particles of gold, copper, brass, mica, or talc, are not correct, as the microscopic examination of aventurine plainly shows. [page 246] There can be no doubt therefore that the crystals in the aventurine consist of metallic copper, which were separated in a crystalline state from the fused glass containing oxide of copper by the addition of some reducing substance.
How to use "aventurine"
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Meaning check
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Source and review context
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Before you rely on this definition
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
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Definitions
Noun
- 1 A kind of brownish glass containing gold-coloured spangles. countable, uncountable
"[pages 244–245] Aventurine is a brown glass flux, containing very small glittering particles, which give it a peculiarly glittering appearance. It was formerly manufactured into objects of art and ornament at Murano near Venice. [...] The statements which are found respecting it in technological works, according to which it is obtained by fusing down with glass minute particles of gold, copper, brass, mica, or talc, are not correct, as the microscopic examination of aventurine plainly shows. [page 246] There can be no doubt therefore that the crystals in the aventurine consist of metallic copper, which were separated in a crystalline state from the fused glass containing oxide of copper by the addition of some reducing substance."
- 2 a translucent quartz spangled with bits of mica or other minerals wordnet
- 3 A variety of translucent quartz, spangled throughout with scales of yellow mica. broadly, countable, uncountable
"The Sandaresus, an Arabian stone, classed by Pliny [the Elder] among the Carbunculi, seems to have been our Aventurine, for he describes it as full of golden stars shining through a transparent substance, not from the surface, but from within the body of the stone. The true Aventurine, or Goldie-stone, is a brownish semi-transparent quartz, full of specks of yellow mica."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
opaque glassplain glassplain quartzunadorned quartz
Example
"[pages 244–245] Aventurine is a brown glass flux, containing very small glittering particles, which give it a peculiarly glittering appearance. It was formerly manufactured into objects of art and ornament at Murano near Venice. [...] The statements which are found respecting it in technological works, according to which it is obtained by fusing down with glass minute particles of gold, copper, brass, mica, or talc, are not correct, as the microscopic examination of aventurine plainly shows. [page 246] There can be no doubt therefore that the crystals in the aventurine consist of metallic copper, which were separated in a crystalline state from the fused glass containing oxide of copper by the addition of some reducing substance."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "aventurine"?
Common synonyms include: aventurine glass, aventurine quartz, glitter glass, glitter quartz, goldstone, quartz with inclusions.
How do you use "aventurine" in a sentence?
[pages 244–245] Aventurine is a brown glass flux, containing very small glittering particles, which give it a peculiarly glittering appearance. It was formerly manufactured into objects of art and ornament at Murano near Venice. [...] The statements which are found respecting it in technological works, according to which it is obtained by fusing down with glass minute particles of gold, copper, brass, mica, or talc, are not correct, as the microscopic examination of aventurine plainly shows. [page 246] There can be no doubt therefore that the crystals in the aventurine consist of metallic copper, which were separated in a crystalline state from the fused glass containing oxide of copper by the addition of some reducing substance.
How do you pronounce "aventurine"?
Pronounced /əˈvɛn.t͡ʃə.ɹɪn/.
Etymology
Borrowed from French aventurine, from Italian avventurino, from avventurare (“to venture; to make lucky or prosperous”), from avventura (“chance; adventure, venture”) + -are (suffix forming the infinitive of most regular verbs), apparently so named because it was discovered by accident in Murano, Italy, when brass or copper filings were dropped into melted glass (see, however, the 1843 quotation).