Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

spinel

/spɪˈnɛl/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.31 in modern English

Syllables: spinel
IPA: /spɪˈnɛl/

8

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

1

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Any of several hard minerals of cubic symmetry that are mixed oxides of magnesium and aluminium and are used as gemstones of various colours.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Any crystalline material, not necessarily an oxide, that possesses the same crystal structure as this mineral.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Spindle; the amount of yarn that fits on a spindle.

Countable; Obsolete; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"Although there are dozens of different types of gems, among the best known and most important are […] . (Common gem materials not addressed in this article include amber, amethyst, chalcedony, garnet, lazurite, malachite, opals, peridot, rhodonite, spinel, tourmaline, turquoise and zircon.)"
"[…] raised the price of that staple of yarn (of one Spinel in the pound weight) from 23d. to 26d. per Spinel."
"339, 612 yards of dimities, muslinets, jaconets, and booked muslins, from rod. to 20s. per yard, and, 4000. spinels of thread and yarn, were bleached by him in 1791, and 45 people were employed in the work."
"... that is fit for any hundred of the reed; and like- wise the number of right telled yarn in spinels, slips, and cuts, that will be sufficient to make any number of ells from 1 to 60, subject, and merely consisted of tables or ready[…]"

Etymology

French spinelle, perhaps from Latin spina (“a thorn, a prickle”), in allusion to its pointed crystals.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: spinel

Regional Pronunciation

British English: /spɪˈnɛl/

Usage

Inflected Forms

spinels (plural) spinelle (alternative)

Derived Forms

chlorospinel cuprospinel selenospinel sulfospinel sulphospinel thiospinel

Phrases

ruby spinel

Frequently Paired Words

ruby

Rhymes With

well as well tell hell lol sell hotel cell fell bell el personnel

Questions

How do you pronounce spinel?: The recorded pronunciation is /spɪˈnɛl/.
What does spinel mean?: Any of several hard minerals of cubic symmetry that are mixed oxides of magnesium and aluminium and are used as gemstones of various colours.
Where does spinel come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce spinel

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “spinel”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/spɪˈnɛl/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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