cinnabar Hear it!

cinnabar definition

cin·na·bar (sin′ə bär′)

noun

  1. mercuric sulfide, HgS, a heavy, bright-red mineral, the principal ore of mercury
  2. artificial mercuric sulfide, used as a red pigment
  3. brilliant red; vermilion

Etymology: ME cinabare < L cinnabaris < Gr kinnabari < ? Ar zinjafr < Pers šangarf, red lead, cinnabar

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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