watch crystal
1
4.9
- noun
:
cristal de reloj
- The watch crystal is scratched, making it difficult to see the time clearly.
Examples
-
She replaced the watch crystal to restore her grandfather's old timepiece to working order.
-
Tate looked at his watch crystal as if to provide himself an answer.
Fiction book (1995) -
The watch crystal is cracked and the hands are frozen at 5:59.
Fiction book (1993) -
He noticed that the watch crystal had a large crack after dropping it on the floor.
Synonyms
60
5.1
A clear protective cover over the face of a watch or clock
A clear protective cover over the face of a watch
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'watch' specifies the object and 'crystal' refers to the transparent cover/glass, so the combined noun denotes the watch's protective transparent face. This follows ordinary noun–noun composition and is likely understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituent meanings.
Etymology
Watch crystal comes from early watchmakers who used clear glass or jewel-like crystal to cover the watch face, a see-through piece that let you read the time while protecting the face, so the phrase now means the 'transparent protective cover' of a watch.