ore

Definition

Rock or other material that contains valuable or utilitarian materials; primarily a rock containing metals or gems for which it is typically mined and processed.

Etymology

From Middle English or, oor, blend of Old English ōra (“ore, unwrought metal”) and ār (“brass, copper, bronze”), the first a derivate of ear (“earth”), the second from Proto-West Germanic *aiʀ, from Proto-Germanic *aiz, from Proto-Indo-European *áyos, h₂éyos. Compare Old Norse eir (“brass, copper”), German ehern (“of metal, of iron”), Gothic 𐌰𐌹𐌶 (aiz, “ore”); also Dutch oer (“ferrous hardpan; bog iron ore”). Compare Latin aes (“bronze, copper”), Avestan 𐬀𐬌𐬌𐬀𐬵 (aiiah), Sanskrit अयस् (áyas, “copper, iron”).

Example Sentences

• "They general­ly occur in the earth in what are called veins, and are seldom found in the pure metallic state, but generally in combination with some other substance, in which state they are call­ed ores."
• "Manganism has been known about since the 19th century, when miners exposed to ores containing manganese, a silvery metal, began to totter, slur their speech and behave like someone inebriated."
• "Stepnohirsk grew into a town from the village of Sukhoivanivka in the 1980s after vast deposits of manganese ore nearby were discovered."