Dictionary Definition
powder
Noun
1 a solid substance in the form of tiny loose
particles; a solid that has been pulverized [syn: pulverization, pulverisation]
2 a mixture of potassium nitrate, charcoal, and
sulfur in
Adjective
7515:10 ratio which is used in gunnery, time
fuses, and fireworks [syn: gunpowder]
3 any of various cosmetic or medical preparations
dispensed in the form of a powder
Verb
1 apply powder to; "She powdered her nose"; "The
King wears a powdered wig"
2 make into a powder by breaking up or cause to
become dust; "pulverize the grains" [syn: powderize, powderise, pulverize, pulverise]
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Etymology
From poudre, pouldre, etyl fro poudre, poldre, puldre, etyl la pulvis. cf. pollen fine flour, mill dust, E. pollen. Cf. , .Pronunciation
\Pow"der\- Rhymes: -aʊdə(r)
Noun
- The fine particles to which any dry substance is reduced by
pounding, grinding, or triturating, or into which it falls by
decay; dust.
- Grind their bones to powder small. —Shakespeare
- An explosive mixture used in gunnery, blasting, etc.; gunpowder.
Derived terms
- Atlas powder, baking powder
- powder blue
- powder down
- powder-down feather
- powder-down patch
- powder hose
- powder hoy
- powder magazine, Powder room
- powder mine
- powder monkey
- powder post
- powder puff
- take a powder
Translations
dust
gunpowder
- Finnish: ruuti
- French: poudre
- German: Schießpulver
- Polish: proch
- Portuguese: pólvora
- Russian: порох (pórox)
- Spanish: pólvora
- Telugu: పేలుడు మందు (paeluDu maMdu)
Verb
- To reduce to fine particles; to pound, grind, or rub into a powder; to comminute; to pulverize; to triturate.
- To sprinkle with powder, or as with powder; to be sprinkle
- to powder the hair.
- A circling zone thou seest / Powdered with stars. --Milton.
- to powder the hair.
- To be reduced to powder; to become like powder.
- Some salts powder easily.
- To use powder on the hair or skin; as,
- She paints and powders.
Translations
To reduce to fine particles
- Finnish: jauhaa hienoksi
- Spanish: reducir a polvo, pulverizar, triturar
To sprinkle with powder
- Finnish: sirotella
To be reduced to powder
- Spanish: pulverizarse, hacerse polvo
- Telugu: పొడి చేయు (poDi caeyu)
To use powder on the hair or skin
- Finnish: puuteroida
- Spanish: ponerse polvos, empolvarse
Extensive Definition
Powder may refer to a number of topics,
including:
- Powder (substance) material composed of very fine particles that are not cemented together
- Powder (film), a 1995 film
- Powder (band), a mid-1990s Britpop band.
- Powder (doom metal band), a Filipino doom metal band formed by composer and songwriter Nephi Malit
- Powder blue, a color
- Powder (pharmaceutical form)
- Powder, a song from the soundtrack of Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door
- Protocol for Web Description Resources (POWDER), a W3C Working Group that is specifying a protocol for publishing descriptions of (e.g. metadata about) Web resources using RDF, OWL, and HTTP
Several powdery substances are known colloquially
as "powder":
- Powdered milk, a milk powder made from dried milk solids
- Cosmetic powders such as face powder and body or talcum powders
- Gunpowder, the explosive powder used as a propellant
- Baking powder, a leavening agent
- Fine snowfall
- Laundry detergent in powder form
- Cocaine
powder in German: Pulver
powder in Esperanto: Polvo
powder in French: Poudre
powder in Hebrew: אבקה
powder in Dutch: Poeder
powder in Japanese: 粉
powder in Russian: Порох (значения)
powder in Simple English: Powder
powder in Yiddish: פולווער
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
Ballistite, TNT, abrade, abscond, absquatulate, air
pollution, atomize,
attritus, balm, balsam, base, beat, besprinkle, bran, bray, bread, break up, brecciate, buck, cellulose nitrate, clown
white, coat, cold cream,
come to dust, comminute, compact, contriturate, cordite, cosmetics, cosmic dust,
cover, crumb, crumble, crumble into dust,
crumble to dust, crush,
decamp, disappear, disintegrate, dog it,
dot, dredge, drops, drug, drugstore complexion,
dust, dust ball, dynamite, effloresce, efflorescence, electuary, elixir, escape, ethical drug, explosive, eye shadow, eyebrow
pencil, fall to dust, fall to pieces, fallout, farina, filings, flour, foundation, foundation cream,
fragment, generic name,
grain, granulate, granulize, grate, greasepaint, grind, grind to powder, grits, groats, gunpowder, hand cream, hand
lotion, herbs, high
explosive, inhalant,
kittens, lam, levigate, lincture, linctus, lint, lip rouge, lipstick, make off, makeup, mascara, mash, materia medica, meal, medicament, medication, medicinal, medicinal herbs,
medicine, melinite, mill, mixture, mudpack, nail polish, nitrocotton, nitroglycerin,
nonprescription drug, officinal, paint, patent medicine, pepper, pestle, pharmacon, physic, plastic explosive,
pound, powder puff,
preparation,
prescription drug, proprietary, proprietary
medicine, proprietary name, puff, pulverize, pussies, raspings, reduce to powder,
rouge, run away, sawdust, scrunch, shard, shred, simples, skedaddle, skip, skip out, smash, smokeless powder, smut, soot, spatter, speck, speckle, splatter, split, spot, sprinkle, squash, stud, syrup, take a powder, take off,
talc, talcum, talcum powder, theraputant, tisane, trinitrotoluol, triturate, vanish, vanishing cream, vanity
case, vegetable remedies, villanous saltpetre, war
paint