coral
corals
Coral is a marine polyp with a calcareous skeleton that lives in colonies. You probably last saw coral while scuba diving at the Great Barrier Reef. That or while looking at the coral necklaces in the beach shop.
Though coral looks like stone with little holes, it is actually a kind of sea polyp with a stony, hole filled skeleton. Sometimes the word coral refers to the skeleton itself. Because of the red color of Mediterranean coral, coral is also an adjective meaning pink-red. Shakespeare wrote: “My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more “red than her lips' red.” Coral can also be a noun for unfertilized lobster eggs that turn red when cooking.
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marine colonial polyp characterized by a calcareous skeleton; masses in a variety of shapes often forming reefs
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types:
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gorgonian, gorgonian coral
corals having a horny or calcareous branching skeleton
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madrepore, madriporian coral, stony coral
corals having calcareous skeletons aggregations of which form reefs and islands
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sea feather
corals forming featherlike colonies
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sea fan
corals having a treelike or fan-shaped horny skeleton
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red coral
corals of especially the Mediterranean having pink or red color used for ornaments and jewelry
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brain coral
massive reef-building coral having a convoluted and furrowed surface
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stag's-horn coral, staghorn coral
large branching coral resembling antlers
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mushroom coral
flattened disk-shaped stony coral (usually solitary and unattached)
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type of:
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actinozoan, anthozoan
sessile marine coelenterates including solitary and colonial polyps; the medusoid phase is entirely suppressed
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the hard stony skeleton of a Mediterranean coral that has a delicate red or pink color and is used for jewelry
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synonyms:
precious coral, red coral
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type of:
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opaque gem
a gemstone that is opaque
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opaque gem
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a variable color averaging a deep pink
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type of:
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pink
a light shade of red
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pink
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of a strong pink to yellowish-pink color
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Synonyms:
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chromatic
being, having, or characterized by hue
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chromatic
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unfertilized lobster roe; reddens in cooking; used as garnish or to color sauces
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