Dictionary
Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.
quicksilver en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- kwĭk'sĭlvər (US)
- /ˈkwɪkˌsɪlvɚ/ (US)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From Middle English quyk silver, quyksilver, quikselver, from Old English cwicseolfor (“quicksilver”, literally “living silver”) (see Latin argentum vīvum) from its ability to move. See quick in the sense of "living". Cognate with Dutch kwikzilver, German Low German Quicksülver, German Quecksilber, Danish kviksølv, Norwegian Bokmål kvikksølv, Swedish kvicksilver. By surface analysis, quick (“living”) + silver.
Meanings
-
(error-unknown-tag, literary, not-comparable) Unpredictable, erratic, or fickle; mercurial.
Summer is not the most auspicious season for theater in New York. Aside from a few certifiable Broadway hits, it is, in fact, a rather quicksilver commodity.
1978 August 19, Kevin Warren, “A Flawless Production”, in Gay Community News, volume 6, number 5, page 15:The idea of a merchant selling both totems of pure evil and frozen yogurt (he calls it frogurt!) is amusing in itself, as is the idea that frogurt could be cursed, but it’s really the Shopkeeper’s quicksilver shift from ominous doomsaying to chipper salesmanship that sells the sequence.
2012 April 29, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Treehouse of Horror III” (season 4, episode 5; originally aired 10/29/1992)”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name):
Translations (1)
de quecksilbrig (unpredictable, erratic)
quicksilver en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- kwĭk'sĭlvər (US)
- /ˈkwɪkˌsɪlvɚ/ (US)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From Middle English quyk silver, quyksilver, quikselver, from Old English cwicseolfor (“quicksilver”, literally “living silver”) (see Latin argentum vīvum) from its ability to move. See quick in the sense of "living". Cognate with Dutch kwikzilver, German Low German Quicksülver, German Quecksilber, Danish kviksølv, Norwegian Bokmål kvikksølv, Swedish kvicksilver. By surface analysis, quick (“living”) + silver.
Meanings
-
(error-unknown-tag, literary, uncountable) The metal mercury.
-
(broadly, error-unknown-tag, literary, uncountable) An amalgam of mercury and tin applied to the backs of mirrors; quicksilvering.
Deriveds
quicksilver water · quicksilverish · quicksilvery · quicksilver soap · quicksilvered · quicksilvering · quicksilver horizon · quicksilver plaster · quicksilver weed
Synonyms
mercury (the metal) · hydrargyrum (the metal)
Translations (58)
ko 수은 (mercury) · fa ژیوه (mercury) · cmn 水銀 /水银 (mercury) · oc argent viu (mercury) · vi thủy ngân (mercury) · fo kyksilvur (mercury) · he כֶּסֶף חַי (mercury) · es argento vivo (mercury) · la argentum vivum (mercury) · bg живак (mercury) · ota سیماب (mercury) · fi elohopea (mercury) · et elavhõbe (mercury) · ro hidrargir (mercury) · da kviksølver (mercury) · ru ртуть (mercury) · pdt Kwickselwa (mercury) · grc ὑδράργυρος (mercury) · vec arzento vivo (mercury) · nn kvikksylv (mercury) · pl żywe srebro (mercury) · es azogue (mercury) · fr vif-argent (mercury) · el υδράργυρος (mercury) · es mercurio (mercury) · nds Quecksülver (mercury) · gl azougue (mercury) · fa سیماب (mercury) · ro mercur (mercury) · vo hidrargin (mercury) · izh elävähoppia (mercury) · ga airgead beo (mercury) · cy arian byw (mercury) · ota جیوه (mercury) · vo märkurin (mercury) · nn kvikksølv (mercury) · fa جیوه (mercury) · kn ಪಾದರಸ (mercury) · nl kwikzilver (mercury) · am ባዜቃ (mercury) · lv dzīvsudrabs (mercury) · kn ಪಾರಜ (mercury) · ka ვერცხლისწყალი (mercury) · pt mercúrio (mercury) · ba терегөмөш (mercury) · pl rtęć (mercury) · vi thuỷ ngân (mercury) · nb kvikksølv (mercury) · sv kvicksilver (mercury) · gl mercurio (mercury) · it argento vivo (mercury) · la hydrargyrum (mercury) · da kviksølv (mercury) · ca argent viu (mercury) · pa ਪਾਰਾ (mercury) · de Quecksilber (mercury) · ro argint viu (mercury) · he כַּסְפִּית (mercury)
quicksilver en · VERB
Pronunciation
- kwĭk'sĭlvər (US)
- /ˈkwɪkˌsɪlvɚ/ (US)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From Middle English quyk silver, quyksilver, quikselver, from Old English cwicseolfor (“quicksilver”, literally “living silver”) (see Latin argentum vīvum) from its ability to move. See quick in the sense of "living". Cognate with Dutch kwikzilver, German Low German Quicksülver, German Quecksilber, Danish kviksølv, Norwegian Bokmål kvikksølv, Swedish kvicksilver. By surface analysis, quick (“living”) + silver.
Meanings
-
(transitive) To overlay with quicksilver.
-
(transitive) To treat with quicksilver.
Forms
Deriveds
unquicksilvered