philosopher's wool
Zinc oxide as a white flocculent powderZinc oxide (chemical formula ZnO) as a white flocculent powder.
UK/fɪˌlɒsəfəz ˈwʊl/US/fəˌlɑs(ə)fəɹz ˈwʊl/
Meaning
1 senses(archaic, uncountable)Zinc oxide (chemical formula ZnO) as a white flocculent powder.
oxide of zinc; a white powder used as a pigment or in cosmetics or glass or inks and in zinc ointment
Origin
From philosopher (“(obsolete) an alchemist”) + -’s + wool.From philosopher (“(obsolete) an alchemist”) + -’s + wool.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Synonyms
4 synonymsClose in meaning
- oxide of zinc; a white powder used as a pigment or in cosmetics or glass or inks and in zinc ointment:zinc oxideflowers of zincphilosophers' wool
Word family
3 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable