amalgam
Americannoun
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an alloy of mercury with another metal or metals.
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an alloy that consists chiefly of silver mixed with mercury and variable amounts of other metals and is used as a dental filling.
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a rare mineral, an alloy of silver and mercury, occurring as silver-white crystals or grains.
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a mixture or combination.
His character is a strange amalgam of contradictory traits.
noun
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an alloy of mercury with another metal, esp with silver
dental amalgam
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a rare white metallic mineral that consists of silver and mercury and occurs in deposits of silver and cinnabar
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a blend or combination
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An alloy of mercury and another metal, especially:
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An alloy of mercury and silver used in dental fillings.
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An alloy of silver and tin used in silvering mirrors.
Etymology
Origin of amalgam
1425–75; late Middle English amalgam ( e ) < Middle French < Medieval Latin < dialectal Arabic al the + malgham < Greek málagma softening agent, equivalent to malak- (stem of malássein to soften) + -ma noun suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It is an amalgam of microeconomic irritants that vary by individual, time and place.
Countries agreed Friday to phase out the use of mercury-based dental amalgams in tooth fillings by 2034, at a conference aimed at reducing harms caused by the toxic metal.
From Barron's
Last month, an amalgam of Celtic fans' groups called the Celtic Fan Collective had a meeting with some key people at the club and they asked if Rodgers had the final say on all players.
From BBC
Scholars have too, saying the amalgam of actions by the administration represent a dangerous departure from U.S. law and tradition.
From Los Angeles Times
It was depressing, that fake tuna, the best on the market but still a vaguely unsavory amalgam of fish paste and seaweed powder — nothing like the tuna she remembered.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
