talc

Meanings

Noun

• Originally a large range of transparent or glistening foliated minerals. Examples include mica, selenite and the hydrated magnesium silicate that the term talc generally has referred to in modern times (see below). Also an item made of such a mineral and depending for its function on the special nature of the mineral (see next). Mediaeval writers adopted the term from the Arabic.
• A microscope slide made of a plate of mica, generally in use from the start of modern microscopy until the early nineteenth century, after which glass slides became the standard medium.
• A soft mineral, composed of hydrated magnesium silicate, that has a soapy feel and a greenish, whitish, or grayish color, and usually occurs in foliated masses.
• Talcum powder.

Verb

• To apply talc to.

Origin

• From Middle French talc, from Arabic طَلْق, from Persian تلک.