What does "jade" mean?
A semiprecious stone, either nephrite or jadeite, generally green or white in color, often used for carving figurines.
Jade
/d͡ʒeɪd/ adj, name, noun, verb
adj, name, noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A semiprecious stone, either nephrite or jadeite, generally green or white in color, often used for carving figurines.
- Grammar: jade is listed as adj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: jade green, absinthe, adamant, adulteress.
- Useful contrasts: colorless, energize, engage.
- Usage evidence: The son of Heaven, when sacrificing, wore the cap decorated with twelve pendants of jade beads hanging down before and behind, and the robe embroidered with dragons.
How to use "jade"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "jade" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "jade" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "jade" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "jade" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "jade" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "jade green" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "jade", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A semiprecious stone, either nephrite or jadeite, generally green or white in color, often used for carving figurines. uncountable, usually
"Although there are dozens of different types of gems, among the best known and most important are diamond, ruby and sapphire, emerald and other gem forms of the mineral beryl, chrysoberyl, tanzanite, tsavorite, topaz and jade."
- 2 A horse too old to be put to work.
"Shee hath more qualities then a Water-Spaniell, […] Shee can fetch and carry: why a horſe can doe no more; nay, a horſe cannot fetch, but onely carry, therefore is ſhee better then a Iade."
- 3 an old or over-worked horse wordnet
- 4 A bright shade of slightly bluish or greyish green, typical of polished jade stones. uncountable, usually
- 5 A bad-tempered or disreputable woman. derogatory, especially
"You alwayes end with a iades tricke, I knowe you of olde."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 a light green color varying from bluish green to yellowish green wordnet
- 7 A succulent plant, Crassula ovata. uncountable, usually
- 8 a woman adulterer wordnet
- 9 a semiprecious gemstone that takes a high polish; is usually green but sometimes whitish; consists of jadeite or nephrite wordnet
Verb
- 1 To fatigue, tire, or weary (someone or something). transitive
"[T]he Mind once jaded by an attempt above its Power, it either is diſabl'd for the future, or elſe checks at any vigorous Undertaking ever after, at leaſt is very hardly brought to exert its Force again on any Subject that requires Thought and Meditation."
- 2 exhaust or get tired through overuse or great strain or stress wordnet
- 3 To treat (someone or something) like a jade; to spurn. obsolete, transitive
"The nere-yet beaten Horſe of Parthia, / We haue iaded out o'th' Field."
- 4 lose interest or become bored with something or somebody wordnet
- 5 To make (someone or something) contemptible and ridiculous. obsolete, transitive
"I do not now foole my ſelfe, to let imagination iade mee; for euery reaſon excites to this, that my Lady loues me."
Adjective
- 1 Of a grayish shade of green, typical of jade stones. not-comparable
Adjective
- 1 of something having the color of jade; especially varying from bluish green to yellowish green wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A female given name from English.
"Emily. Em-il-y, three syllables, like a knock on the door of destiny. Such an odd, old-fashioned name, compared to those Kylies and Traceys and Jades — names that reeked of Impulse and grease and stood out in gaudy neon colours —"
- 2 A surname
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"The son of Heaven, when sacrificing, wore the cap decorated with twelve pendants of jade beads hanging down before and behind, and the robe embroidered with dragons."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "jade"?
Common synonyms include: jade green, absinthe, adamant, adulteress, agate, alexandrite.
How do you use "jade" in a sentence?
The son of Heaven, when sacrificing, wore the cap decorated with twelve pendants of jade beads hanging down before and behind, and the robe embroidered with dragons.
How do you pronounce "jade"?
Pronounced /d͡ʒeɪd/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Borrowed from French le jade, rebracketing of earlier l'éjade (“jade”), from Spanish piedra de ijada (“flank stone”), via Vulgar Latin *iliata from Latin ilia (“flank”). (Jade was thought to cure pains in the side.)
Etymology 2
From Middle English jade, chade, either a variant of yaud or merely influenced by it. Yaud derives from Old Norse jalda (“mare”), from a Uralic language, such as Moksha эльде (elde) or Erzya эльде (elde). See yaud for more.
Etymology 3
From the precious stone jade; taken into general use in the 1970s.