noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A metallic ore, (Fe,Mn)(Ta,Nb)₂O₆, from which the elements niobium and tantalum are extracted. countable, uncountable

   "Coltan is used for the production of tantalum capacitors."

2. 2
   a valuable black mineral combining niobite and tantalite; used in cell phones and computer chips wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

columbite-tantalitecolumbite tantalite

Example

More examples

"Coltan is used for the production of tantalum capacitors."

Etymology

Blend of columbite + tantalite.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.