Sapphire

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˈsæf.aɪ.É™(ɹ)/
• Hyphenation: sap + phire

Origin

Old French saphir, from Latin sapphirus, from Ancient Greek ἡ σάπφειρος (hē sáppheiros, "precious stone, gem") (2nd decl.; transliterated /sápfiros/ in Biblos - Strong's Greek, entry 4552, sometimes spelt σάμφειρος in Griechisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch or unusually hyphened as σάπ-φειρος by Leander van Ess in "Hē palaia diathēkē kata tous hebdomēkonta" published in 1835), from a Semitic language (compare Hebrew סַפִּיר (cf. Strong's Concordance: entry 5601, probably ultimately from a non-Semitic source such as Sanskrit शनिप्रिय (śanipriya, "dear to Saturn") and dark-coloured stone (cf. Dictionary for Spoken Sanskrit).

Full definition of sapphire

Noun

1. A clear deep blue variety of corundum, valued as a precious stone.
• 2012-03, Lee A. Groat, Gemstones, Although there are dozens of different types of gems, among the best known and most important are diamond, ruby and sapphire, emerald and other gem forms of the mineral beryl, chrysoberyl, tanzanite, tsavorite, topaz and jade.
2. A white, yellow, or purple variety of corundum, either clear or translucent.
3. A deep blue colour.
4. A type of South American hummingbird.The blue-chinned sapphire can be found many parts of South America, depending on season.

Derived terms

Related terms

• corundum

Adjective

1. of a deep blue colour.