glass

/glæs/

/glɑs/

Other forms: glassed; glassing

Glass is the hard, transparent material that's used to make windows. While glass can be strong and sturdy, it's also brittle and can be broken easily by an errant baseball.

Glass has all kinds of practical uses, from car windshields to greenhouse windows to jam jars to drinking glasses. When someone offers you a glass of water, they're referring to the vessel itself as a glass and also to amount it can hold — the glassful of liquid. The Old English source of glass is glæs, ultimately from a Proto-Indo-European root that means "to shine."

Definitions of glass
  1. noun
    a brittle transparent solid with irregular atomic structure
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    types:
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    natural glass
    magma of any composition that cooled very rapidly
    milk glass, opal glass
    a milky white translucent or opaque glass
    optical glass
    clear homogeneous glass of known refractive index; used to make lenses
    crown glass
    a glass blown into a globe which is later flattened and spun to form a disk
    soft glass
    glass having a relatively low softening point
    ground glass
    glass that diffuses light due to a rough surface produced by abrasion or etching
    ground glass
    particulate glass made by grinding and used as an abrasive
    lead glass
    glass containing lead oxide; has a high refractive index
    laminated glass, safety glass, shatterproof glass
    glass made with plates of plastic or resin or other material between two sheets of glass to prevent shattering
    sodium silicate, soluble glass, water glass
    a viscous glass consisting of sodium silicate in solution; used as a cement or as a protective coating and to preserve eggs
    stained glass
    glass that has been colored in some way; used for church windows
    wire glass
    a glass that contains a layer of wire netting in it
    Pyrex
    a borosilicate glass with a low coefficient of expansion; used for heat-resistant glassware in cooking and chemistry
    crystal, lechatelierite, quartz, quartz glass, vitreous silica
    colorless glass made of almost pure silica
    crown glass, optical crown, optical crown glass
    optical glass of low dispersion and low refractive index
    flint glass, optical flint
    optical glass of high dispersion and high refractive index
    tektite
    thought to derive from meteorites
    paste
    a hard, brilliant lead glass that is used in making artificial jewelry
    Tiffany glass
    a kind of opalescent colored glass that was used in the early 1900s for stained-glass windows and lamps
    type of:
    solid
    matter that is solid at room temperature and pressure
  2. noun
    glassware collectively
    “She collected old glass”
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    type of:
    glassware, glasswork
    an article of tableware made of glass
  3. noun
    a container for holding liquids while drinking
    synonyms: drinking glass
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    types:
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    beer glass
    a relatively large glass for serving beer
    bumper
    a glass filled to the brim (especially as a toast)
    goblet
    a drinking glass with a base and stem
    highball glass
    a tall glass for serving highballs
    liqueur glass
    a small glass for serving a small amount of liqueur (typically after dinner)
    parfait glass
    a tall slender glass with a short stem in which parfait is served
    rummer
    a large drinking glass (ovoid bowl on a stem) for drinking toasts
    schooner
    a large beer glass
    seidel
    a glass for beer
    jigger, pony, shot glass
    a small glass adequate to hold a single swallow of whiskey
    brandy glass, brandy snifter, snifter
    a globular glass with a small top; used for serving brandy
    tumbler
    a glass with a flat bottom but no handle or stem; originally had a round bottom
    water glass
    a glass for drinking water
    wineglass
    a glass that has a stem and in which wine is served
    champagne flute, flute, flute glass
    a tall narrow wineglass
    type of:
    container
    any object that can be used to hold things (especially a large metal boxlike object of standardized dimensions that can be loaded from one form of transport to another)
  4. noun
    the quantity a glass will hold
    synonyms: glassful
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    type of:
    containerful
    the quantity that a container will hold
  5. noun
    a mirror; usually a ladies' dressing mirror
    synonyms: looking glass
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    type of:
    mirror
    polished surface that forms images by reflecting light
  6. noun
    a small refracting telescope
    synonyms: field glass, spyglass
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    type of:
    refracting telescope
    optical telescope that has a large convex lens that produces an image that is viewed through the eyepiece
  7. verb
    furnish with glass
    “glass the windows”
    synonyms: glaze
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    types:
    double-glaze
    provide with two sheets of glass
    type of:
    furnish, provide, render, supply
    give something useful or necessary to
  8. verb
    enclose with glass
    “glass in a porch”
    synonyms: glass in
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    type of:
    close in, enclose, inclose, shut in
    surround completely
  9. verb
    put in a glass container
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    type of:
    enclose, inclose, insert, introduce, put in, stick in
    introduce
  10. verb
    scan (game in the forest) with binoculars
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    type of:
    scan
    examine minutely or intensely
  11. verb
    become glassy or take on a glass-like appearance
    synonyms: glass over, glaze, glaze over
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    type of:
    change
    undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature
  12. noun
    an amphetamine derivative (trade name Methedrine) used in the form of a crystalline hydrochloride; used as a stimulant to the nervous system and as an appetite suppressant
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    type of:
    controlled substance
    a drug or chemical substance whose possession and use are controlled by law
Pronunciation
US

/glæs/
UK

/glɑs/
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘glass'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
Word Family

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"The New England Primer"

A Puritan child learned how to read by chanting alphabet rhymes based on the Bible. Here are 24 words selected from the primer that did not include the letters "I" and "U." Here are all the word lists to support the reading of Grade 11 Unit 2's texts from SpringBoard's Common Core ELA series: The Crucible, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, The New England Primer, The Trial of Martha Carrier, The Lessons of Salem, The Very Proper Gander, Declaration of Conscience, Why I Wrote The Crucible, Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address, Speech to the Virginia Convention, The Gettysburg Address, FDR's First Inaugural Address , JFK's Inaugural Address

"The Tragedy of Hamlet," Vocabulary from Act 3

As you read Act 3 of William Shakespeare's "The Tragedy of Hamlet," learn this word list. Here are links to lists for texts in Grade 12's Collection 4: Hamlet, Act 1, Hamlet, Act 2, Hamlet, Act 3, Hamlet, Act 4, Hamlet, Act 5, Hamlet's Dull Revenge, Tell Them Not to Kill Me!, Blocking the Transmission of Violence, Hatred

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