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Webster 1913 Edition

Borax

Bo′rax

,
Noun.
[OE.
boras
, fr. F.
borax
, earlier spelt
borras
; cf. LL.
borax
, Sp.
borraj
; all fr. Ar.
b[GREEK]rag
, fr. Pers.
b[GREEK]rah
.]
A white or gray crystalline salt, with a slight alkaline taste, used as a flux, in soldering metals, making enamels, fixing colors on porcelain, and as a soap. It occurs native in certain mineral springs, and is made from the boric acid of hot springs in Tuscany. It was originally obtained from a lake in Thibet, and was sent to Europe under the name of tincal. Borax is a pyroborate or tetraborate of sodium, Na2B4O7.10H2O.
Borax bead
.
(Chem.)
See
Bead
,
Noun.
, 3.

Webster 1828 Edition

Borax

BO'RAX

,
Noun.
Sub-borate of soda; a salt formed by the combination of boracic acid with the marine alkali or soda. It is brought from the East Indies, where it is said to be found at the bottom or on the margin of certain lakes,particularly in Thibet. It is said to be artificially prepared in Persia, like niter. It comes in three states. 1. Crude borax, tinkal, or chrysocolla, from Persia, in greenish masses of a greasy feel, or in opake crystals. 2. Borax of China, somewhat purer, in small plates or masses, irregularly crystallized, and of a dirty white. 3. Dutch or purified borax, in portions of transparent crystals, which is the kind generally used. It is an excellent flux in docimastic operations, a styptic in medicine, and useful in soldering metals.

Definition 2024

Borax

Borax

See also: borax and bórax

German

Noun

Borax n

  1. (mineralogy) borax

borax

borax

See also: Borax and bórax

English

Borax

Noun

borax ‎(uncountable)

  1. A white or gray/grey crystalline salt, with a slight alkaline taste, used as a flux, in soldering metals, making enamels, fixing colors/colours on porcelain, and as a soap, etc.
  2. (chemistry) The sodium salt of boric acid, Na2B4O7, either anhydrous or with 5 or 10 molecules of water of crystallisation; sodium tetraborate.

Synonyms

Translations

Derived terms

Adjective

borax ‎(not comparable)

  1. Cheap or tawdry, referring to furniture or other works of industrial design.

Etymology

From Middle English boras, from Anglo-Norman boreis, from Medieval Latin baurach ‎(“borax”), from Arabic بَوْرَق ‎(bawraq), from Middle Persian *būrag, which yielded Persian بوره ‎(bure).

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