kieselguhr

English

Etymology

Borrowed from German Kieselguhr, older spelling of Kieselgur, from Kiesel (“pebble, gravel”) +‎ Gur (“guhr”).

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈkiːzəlɡʊə/

Noun

kieselguhr (countable and uncountable, plural kieselguhrs)

  1. Diatomaceous earth, a kind of soft rock containing the remains of diatoms; it absorbs nitroglycerine and is used to manufacture dynamite.
    • 2006, Thomas Pynchon, “Iceland Spar”, in Against the Day, New York, N.Y.: Penguin Press, →ISBN, page 171:
      It was the only name anybody seemed to know him by, “Kieselguhr” being a kind of fine clay, used to soak up nitroglycerine and stabilize it into dynamite.

French

Noun

kieselguhr m (plural kieselguhrs)

  1. kieselguhr, diatomaceous earth
    Synonyms: terre d'infusoires, terre diatomée

Further reading

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