alloy
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Related to alloys: List of alloys
alloy
a lower-quality metal mixed with a more valuable one; to debase, impair, or adulterate; fusion, blend, composite: Coins are often alloys.
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree
al·loy
(ăl′oi′, ə-loi′)n.
1. A metallic solid or liquid that is composed of a homogeneous mixture of two or more metals or of metals and nonmetal or metalloid elements, usually for the purpose of imparting or increasing specific characteristics or properties: Brass is an alloy of zinc and copper.
2. A mixture; an amalgam: "Television news has ... always been an alloy of journalism and show business" (Bill Moyers).
3. The relative degree of mixture with a base metal; fineness.
4. Something added that lowers value or purity.
tr.v. (ə-loi′, ăl′oi′) al·loyed, al·loy·ing, al·loys
1. To combine (metals) to form an alloy.
2. To combine; mix: idealism that was alloyed with political skill.
3. To debase by the addition of an inferior element.
[Alteration (influenced by French aloi) of obsolete allay, from Middle English alay, from Old North French allai, from allayer, to alloy, from Latin alligāre, to bind : ad-, ad- + ligāre, to bind; see leig- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
alloy
n
1. (Metallurgy) a metallic material, such as steel, brass, or bronze, consisting of a mixture of two or more metals or of metallic elements with nonmetallic elements. Alloys often have physical properties markedly different from those of the pure metals
2. something that impairs the quality or reduces the value of the thing to which it is added
vb (tr)
3. (Metallurgy) to add (one metal or element to another metal or element) to obtain a substance with a desired property
4. to debase (a pure substance) by mixing with an inferior element
5. to diminish or impair
[C16: from Old French aloi a mixture, from aloier to combine, from Latin alligāre, from ligāre to bind]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
al•loy
(n. ˈæl ɔɪ, əˈlɔɪ; v. əˈlɔɪ)n.
1. a substance composed of two or more metals, or of a metal or metals with a nonmetal, intimately mixed, as by fusion or electrodeposition.
2. a less costly metal mixed with a more valuable one.
3. standard; quality; fineness.
4. admixture, as of good with evil.
5. anything added that serves to reduce quality or purity.
v.t. 6. to mix (metals or metal with nonmetal) so as to form an alloy.
7. to reduce or debase by admixture; adulterate.
[1590–1600; < Middle French aloi, Old French alei, n. derivative of aleier to combine < Latin alligāre to bind up =al- al- + ligāre to bind (see ally, ligament)]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
al·loy
(ăl′oi′) A metallic substance made by mixing and fusing two or more metals, or a metal and a nonmetal, to obtain desirable qualities such as hardness, lightness, and strength. Brass, bronze, and steel are all alloys.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
alloy
Past participle: alloyed
Gerund: alloying
| Imperative |
|---|
| alloy |
| alloy |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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| Noun | 1. |  alloy - a mixture containing two or more metallic elements or metallic and nonmetallic elements usually fused together or dissolving into each other when molten; "brass is an alloy of zinc and copper"mixture - (chemistry) a substance consisting of two or more substances mixed together (not in fixed proportions and not with chemical bonding) heavy metal - a metal of relatively high density (specific gravity greater than about 5) or of high relative atomic weight (especially one that is poisonous like mercury or lead) 18-karat gold - an alloy that contains 75 per cent gold 22-karat gold - an alloy that contains 87 per cent gold Alnico - trade name for an alloy used to make high-energy permanent magnets; contains aluminum and iron and nickel plus cobalt or copper or titanium amalgam, dental amalgam - an alloy of mercury with another metal (usually silver) used by dentists to fill cavities in teeth; except for iron and platinum all metals dissolve in mercury and chemists refer to the resulting mercury mixtures as amalgams fusible metal - an alloy with a low melting point and used as solder and in safety plugs and sprinkler fuses electrum - an alloy of gold and silver pewter - any of various alloys of tin with small amounts of other metals (especially lead) pinchbeck - an alloy of copper and zinc that is used in cheap jewelry to imitate gold pot metal - an alloy of copper and lead used especially for making large pots solder - an alloy (usually of lead and tin) used when melted to join two metal surfaces white gold - a pale alloy of gold usually with platinum or nickel or palladium type metal - an alloy of tin and lead and antimony used to make printing type bearing metal, white metal - an alloy (often of lead or tin base) used for bearings babbitt, Babbitt metal - an alloy of tin with some copper and antimony; a lining for bearings that reduces friction Britannia metal - an alloy similar to pewter CARBOLOY - [trademark] an alloy based on tungsten with cobalt or nickel as a binder; used in making metal-cutting tools steel - an alloy of iron with small amounts of carbon; widely used in construction; mechanical properties can be varied over a wide range cheoplastic metal - any alloy that fuses at low temperatures and can be used molding artificial teeth copper-base alloy - any alloy whose principal component is copper dental gold - an alloy of gold used in dentistry Duralumin - an aluminum-based alloy Inconel - a nickel-base alloy with chromium and iron; used in gas-turbine blades Invar - an alloy of iron and nickel having a low coefficient of thermal expansion; used in tuning forks and measuring tapes and other instruments nickel alloy, nickel-base alloy - an alloy whose main constituent is nickel German silver, nickel silver - a silver-white alloy containing copper and zinc and nickel pyrophoric alloy - an alloy that emits sparks when struck or scratched with steel; used in lighter flints shot metal - an alloy that is 98% lead and 2% arsenic; used in making small shot primary solid solution, solid solution - a homogeneous solid that can exist over a range of component chemicals; a constituent of alloys that is formed when atoms of an element are incorporated into the crystals of a metal Stellite - ® a very hard alloy of cobalt and chromium with cobalt as the principal ingredient; used to make cutting tools and for surfaces subject to heavy wear sterling silver - a silver alloy with no more than 7.5% copper tambac, tombac, tombak - an alloy of copper and zinc (and sometimes arsenic) used to imitate gold in cheap jewelry and for gilding Wood's alloy, Wood's metal - a fusible alloy that is half bismuth plus lead, tin, and cadmium; melts at about 160 degrees Fahrenheit |
| 2. | alloy - the state of impairing the quality or reducing the value of something impureness, impurity - the condition of being impure | |
| Verb | 1. |  alloy - lower in value by increasing the base-metal contentmetallurgy - the science and technology of metals devalue - lower the value or quality of; "The tear devalues the painting" |
| 2. |  alloy - make an alloy of chemical science, chemistry - the science of matter; the branch of the natural sciences dealing with the composition of substances and their properties and reactions metallurgy - the science and technology of metals |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
alloy
noun mixture, combination, compound, blend, hybrid, composite, amalgam, meld, admixture Bronze is an alloy of copper and tin.
Alloys
Alnico (trademark (amalgam)), austenitic stainless steel, Babbit metal, bell bronze, bell metal, billon, brass, brazing solder, Britannia metal, bronze, chromel, constantan, cupronickel, Duralumin (trademark), electrum, ferrochromium, ferromanganese, ferromolybdenum, ferronickel, ferrosilicon, Invar (trademark), kamacite, magnolia metal, magnox, Manganin (trademark), misch metal, Monel or Monell metal, Nichrome (trademark), nickel silver, nimonic alloy, ormolu, oroide, osmiridium, permalloy, pewter, phosphor bronze, pinchbeck, platina, platiniridium, soft solder, speculum metal, steel, Stellite (trademark), sterling silver, terne, tombac or tambac, type metal, white gold, zircalloyCollins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
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Spanish / Español
alloy
[ˈælɔɪ]Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
alloy
(ˈӕloi) noun a mixture of two or more metals. aleación
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.