pyrites
- noun
- /ˈpaɪraɪts/
:
piritas
- The geologist examined the samples and identified the presence of pyrites in the rock formation.
Examples
-
Hikers in the area often find pyrites glinting in the sunlight among the riverbed stones.
-
In jewelry making, pyrites are sometimes used as a decorative substitute for gold due to their shiny brass-yellow appearance.
-
You have, you know, iron pyrites, and you have quartz and granite and all those things that that sand is made-up from.
Synonyms
4
4.9
A shiny yellow rock or thing that looks like gold but is worthless
2
7.6
A common pale yellow mineral that looks like gold but is not gold
1
6.0
A hard mineral that looks like gold but is not real gold
A mineral made from iron and sulfur that is often called fool's gold
Compounds
- Specialized
A yellow shiny mineral that contains copper and iron and people mine it for copper
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
The word pyrites comes from the Greek root pyr meaning 'fire', because people found that hitting these stones made sparks like tiny fires. That's why pyrites is used for shiny, metal-looking minerals, often with a brass-yellow colour.