: a usually amorphous mineral that is a hydrated silica softer and less dense than quartz and typically with definite and often marked iridescent play of colors and is used especially as a gem
Examples of opal in a Sentence
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Do not use Windex on softer gems like pearls, opals, or emeralds, because the ammonia may damage them.
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Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 8 Sep. 2025
In the Victorian era, opal got cancelled, in part, because the novelist Sir Walter Scott created a character who died while wearing one.
—Paige Williams, New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2025
Swifties searching for clues to the album think that song might have special meaning for Travis, whose birthstone is opal.
—Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 27 Aug. 2025
In other cultures, however, opal is a symbol of hope and purity, but also occult magic.
—Beatrice Zocchi, Glamour, 19 July 2025
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Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 8 Sep. 2025
In the Victorian era, opal got cancelled, in part, because the novelist Sir Walter Scott created a character who died while wearing one.
—Paige Williams, New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2025
Swifties searching for clues to the album think that song might have special meaning for Travis, whose birthstone is opal.
—Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 27 Aug. 2025
In other cultures, however, opal is a symbol of hope and purity, but also occult magic.
—Beatrice Zocchi, Glamour, 19 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for opal
Cite this Entry
“Opal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/opal. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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opal
noun
: a mineral with changeable colors that is used as a gem
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