aquamarine

aqua·ma·rine

noun \ˌä-kwə-mə-ˈrēn, ˌa-\

Definition of AQUAMARINE

1

: a transparent blue, blue-green, or green variety of beryl used as a gem

2

: a pale blue to light greenish blue

Origin of AQUAMARINE

New Latin aqua marina, from Latin, sea water

First Known Use: 1677

Rhymes with AQUAMARINE

acetylene, adamantine, alexandrine, amphetamine, Benedictine, carbon 13, elephantine, flying machine, garbanzo bean, heart-lung machine, internecine, labyrinthine, merchant marine, milling machine, mujahideen, nanomachine, nouvelle cuisine, Oligocene, Paleocene, pinball machine, rowing machine, simple machine, talking machine, ultramarine, vanilla bean, vending machine, voting machine, washing machine

aquamarine

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Pale greenish blue or bluish green variety of beryl that is valued as a gemstone. The most common variety of gem beryl, it occurs in pegmatites, in which it forms much larger and clearer crystals than emerald, the dark green variety of beryl. Aquamarine occurs in Brazil, which is the chief source, and in such other sites as the Ural Mountains, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, India, and Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, North Carolina, and Colorado in the U.S. Heat treatment is commonly used to improve the colour of gem beryls.