guinea gold
- noun
- Archaic
:
oro guinea
- Jewellers sometimes refer to 22-karat alloys as guinea gold due to their historical use in British coinage.
Examples
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The museum’s display included a rare coin made of pure guinea gold dating back to the 18th century.
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Because it was composed of guinea gold, the old coin has retained its rich, yellow colour for centuries.
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The guinea gold coins were minted in the 18th century.
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She inherited a collection of guinea golds from her grandmother.
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The jeweller praised the beautiful luster of the guinea gold used in the stunning antique bracelet.
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A historic collection of guinea gold coins was unveiled at the exhibition, showcasing Britain's rich minting history.
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Many collectors value guinea gold for its purity and connection to traditional British coinage.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A soft yellow metal that is valuable and used for jewelry and money
1
3.1
A metal made of about 87 percent gold used for jewelry
Surface Forms
Morphology
Knowing 'guinea' (a gold coin) and 'gold' will lead a B1 learner to infer something gold-like or gold-coloured, so there is a visible compositional cue. However, the specific meaning — a brass alloy with a reddish tint used in plumbing and cheap jewelry — is a specialized, non-obvious material designation that cannot be fully predicted from the parts alone.
Etymology
Guinea gold may come from the old British coin called the guinea, which was made of warm 22‑karat gold often from the Guinea region in Africa. So guinea gold means the rich yellow gold used to make those coins.