rare earth en · NOUN
Etymology
From rare + earth. First use appears c. 1841 in the publications of Henry Minchin Noad. See cite below.
Meanings
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Any of the naturally occurring oxides of the lanthanide metals; they are widely distributed in relatively small concentrations and are used in glassmaking, ceramic glazes etc.
The metallic base of yttria, a very rare earth, discovered in a mineral called godolinite.
1841, Henry Minchin Noad, Lectures on Chemistry, Including Its Applications in the Arts, and the Analysis of Organic and Inorganic Compounds, page 375:Meronyms: rare earth element, rare earth metal
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A rare earth element.
But the government also gave MP Materials a decade-long guaranteed price floor for its products, such as the rare earths neodymium-praseodymium, at twice recent market rates (leaving aside the fact prices have soared this week as MP Materials has cut ties with China).
2025 August 30, Gillian Tett, “America’s new ‘patriotic’ capitalism”, in FT Weekend, London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 7:Near-synonym: lanthanide
Despite their name, rare earths are not so rare. The most common, cerium, is as plentiful in the Earth's crust as copper or lead. The difference between them and more familiar materials is that, in nature, rare earths are almost never found on their own. Rather, they're mixed with other minerals, and often at low concentrations, making them difficult to mine economically.
2025 July 18, Timothy McLaughlin, “A Rebel Army Is Building a Rare-Earth Empire on China's Border. The Kachin Independence Organization fought for decades in obscurity. Now it's supplying essential minerals to manufacturers around the world”, in Bloomberg Businessweek, archived from the original on 18 Jul 2025:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| rare earths | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
rare earth mineral · rare earth metal · rare earth element
Hypernyms
material · metal · substance · element
Synonyms
lanthanide · rare earth mineral · rare earth metal
Translations (19)
cmn 稀土 (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · af seldsame aarde (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · pl metal ziem rzadkich (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · ko 희토류 (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · id tanah jarang (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · ja レアアース (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · fi maametallimineraali (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · vi đất hiếm (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · ja 希土類 (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · ru ре́дкие зе́мли (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · es tierra rara (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · fr terre rare (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · pt terra rara (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · ga tearcithir (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · kk сирекжер (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · ga tearc-chré (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · cy prinfwyn (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · ka იშვიათი მიწები (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals) · de seltene Erde (naturally occurring oxide of the lanthanide metals)