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Showing results for graphite. Search instead for Crotaphite.
Synonyms

graphite

American  
[graf-ahyt] / ˈgræf aɪt /

noun

  1. a very common mineral, soft native carbon, occurring in black to dark-gray foliated masses, with metallic luster and greasy feel: used for pencil leads, as a lubricant, and for making crucibles and other refractories; plumbago; black lead.

graphite British  
/ ˈɡræfaɪt, ɡrəˈfɪtɪk /

noun

  1. Also called: plumbago.  a blackish soft allotropic form of carbon in hexagonal crystalline form: used in pencils, crucibles, and electrodes, as a lubricant, as a moderator in nuclear reactors, and, in a carbon fibre form, as a tough lightweight material for sporting equipment

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
graphite Scientific  
/ grăf′īt′ /

  1. A naturally occurring, steel-gray to black, crystalline form of carbon. The carbon atoms in graphite are strongly bonded together in sheets. Because the bonds between the sheets are weak, other atoms can easily fit between them, causing graphite to be soft and slippery to the touch. Graphite is used in pencils and paints and as a lubricant and electrode. It is also used to control chain reactions in nuclear reactors because of its ability to absorb neutrons.

Other Word Forms

  • graphitic adjective
  • nongraphitic adjective

Etymology

Origin of graphite

1790–1800; < German Graphit < Greek gráph ( ein ) to write, draw + German -it -ite 1

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 features 26 paintings, oil sketches and drawings, these last done in Conté crayon, a medium made from powdered graphite and carbon black that allowed deeper blacks and more expressive tonal contrasts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 28, 2026

At the same time, a graphite electrode extracted chloride ions in a process known as electrochemical desalination.

From Science Daily • Feb. 19, 2026

After last week's meeting, the White House said China will issue export licences for rare earths, as well as gallium, germanium, antimony and graphite.

From Barron's • Nov. 5, 2025

Ukraine is believed to have vast reserves of critical rare minerals like graphite, titanium and lithium beneath its soil.

From BBC • Apr. 30, 2025

Everyone was shivering and covered with black graphite dust.

From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin

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.