Search the Dictionary

The color of a ruby; carmine red; a red tint. The natural ruby of your cheeks. Shak.

Having the tail, or lower part of the body, bright red.

A European gold wasp (Chrysis ignita) which has the under side of the abdomen bright red, and the other parts deep bluish green with a metallic luster. The larva is parasitic in the nests of other wasps and of bees.

Any one of numerous species of humming birds belonging to Trochilus, Calypte, Stellula, and allies, in which the male has on the throat a brilliant patch of red feathers having metallic reflections; esp., the common humming bird of the Eastern United States (Trochilus colubris).

red sandalwood. See under Sandalwood.

A variety of spinel ruby, of a pale rose red, or inclining to orange. See Spinel.

A kind of type, larger than pearl and smaller than nonpareil; in England called ruby.

ep tinge, and becomes of the color of burning coal. The name belongs for the most part to ruby sapphire, though it has been also given to red spinel and garnet.

in a crystalline state, including sapphire, which is the fine blue variety; the oriental ruby, or red sapphire; the oriental amethyst, or purple sapphire; and adamantine spar, the hair-brown variety. It is the hardest substance found native, next to the diamond.

A kind of ruby. See Spinel.

A precious stone of any kind, as the ruby, emerald, topaz, sapphire, beryl, spinel, etc., especially when cut and polished for ornament; a jewel. Milton.

ck of a bird or mammal. Gorget hummer (Zoöl.), a humming bird of the genus Trochilus. See Rubythroat.

y feed both upon the nectar of flowers and upon small insects. The common humming bird or ruby-throat of the Eastern United States is Trochilus culubris. Several other species are found in the Western United States. See Calliope, and Ruby-throat. -- Humming-bird moth (Zoöl.), a hawk moth. See Hawk moth, under Hawk, th…

A bearing for a pivot a pivot in a watch, formed of a crystal or precious stone, as a ruby. Jewel block (Naut.), block at the extremity of a yard, through which the halyard of a studding sail is rove.

A size of type next smaller than minion and next larger than agate (or ruby).

of a beautiful cochineal-red color, occurring in rhombohedral crystals, and also massive; ruby silver.

Ruby silver; dark red silver ore. It is a sulphide of antimony and silver, occurring in rhombohedral crystals or massive, and is of a dark red or black color with a metallic adamantine luster.

ck patches on the back. -- Rock rabbit (Zoöl.), the hyrax. See Cony, and Daman. -- Rock ruby (Min.), a fine reddish variety of garnet. -- Rock salt (Min.), cloride of sodium (common salt) occuring in rocklike masses in mines; mineral salt; salt dug from the earth. In the United States this name is sometimes given to…

A little ruby. Herrick.

A variety of tourmaline varying in color from a pale rose to a deep ruby, and containing lithium.