apatite

Meaning

Noun

• A calcium fluoride phosphate of variable composition, sometimes used in the manufacture of fertilizer, as a gemstone, and (in powdered form) as a pigment.

Origin

• . Apatit was coined by the German geologist Abraham Gottlob Werner (1749–1817) from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓πᾰ́τη as it is often mistaken for other minerals (possibly from Pre-Greek) + German -it, and was first used in a 1786 book. Regarding minerals that were named for being deceptive and thus confused with others, compare also fool's gold.