halite

[ hal-ahyt, hey-lahyt ]

noun

a soft white or colorless mineral, sodium chloride, NaCl, occurring in cubic crystals with perfect cleavage; rock salt.

Origin of halite

First recorded in 1865–70; hal- + -ite¹

Words Nearby halite

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use halite in a sentence

Chlorine occurs in nature chiefly combined with sodium, as halite or rock salt (NaCl).
A Textbook of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. | Cornelius Beringer and John Jacob Beringer
Some of the uses of common salt are given in the description of halite in the preceding chapter.
Geology | William J. Miller
Common salt constitutes the mineral halite, the composition of which is sodium chloride.
The Economic Aspect of Geology | C. K. Leith

British Dictionary definitions for halite

halite

/ (ˈhælaɪt) /

noun

a colourless or white mineral sometimes tinted by impurities, found in beds as an evaporite. It is used to produce common salt and chlorine. Composition: sodium chloride. Formula: NaCl. Crystal structure: cubic: Also called: rock salt

Origin of halite

C19: from New Latin halītes; see halo-, -ite ²

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

Scientific definitions for halite

halite

[ hăl′īt′, hā′līt′ ]

A colorless or white mineral occurring as cubic crystals. Halite is found in dried lakebeds in arid climates and is used as table salt. Chemical formula: NaCl. See more at salt.

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