Main Entry:

por·ce·lain

Pronunciation:

\ˈpȯr-s(ə-)lən\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Middle French porcelaine cowrie shell, porcelain, from Italian porcellana, from porcello vulva, literally, little pig, from Latin porcellus, diminutive of porcus pig, vulva; from the shape of the shell — more at farrow

Date:

circa 1530

1 : a hard, fine-grained, sonorous, nonporous, and usually translucent and white ceramic ware that consists essentially of kaolin, quartz, and a feldspathic rock and is fired at a high temperature —called also hard-paste porcelain true porcelain 2 : soft-paste porcelain

— por·ce·lain·like \-ˌlīk\ adjective

— por·ce·la·ne·ous or por·cel·la·ne·ous \ˌpȯr-sə-ˈlā-nē-əs\ adjective