Meaning & use
nacre
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Meanings
noununcountablebiology
The smooth, shiny, rainbow-tinted layer that lines the shells of some mollusks and makes up pearls.
Grammar: A mass noun: the inside of the shell is covered in nacre.
Patterns
- a layer of nacre
- coated with nacre
Oysters build up nacre around a grain of sand to form a pearl.
The inside of the abalone shell gleamed with blue and green nacre.
Scientists study nacre because it is both light and surprisingly tough.
noununcountable
This material when cut and used for buttons, jewelry, inlay and decoration.
Grammar: Often used before another noun or as the material: a nacre button.
Patterns
- inlaid with nacre
- a nacre inlay
The guitar had a neck inlaid with delicate nacre flowers.
She sewed a row of nacre buttons onto the old coat.
The jewelry box was decorated with a panel of polished nacre.
Common combinations
- layers of nacre
- A pearl grows from many thin layers of nacre.
- inlaid with nacre
- The old violin case was inlaid with nacre.
- iridescent nacre
- The iridescent nacre shimmered in the sunlight.
- secrete nacre
- The mollusk secretes nacre to coat the irritant.
- nacre button
- Each nacre button caught the light differently.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mother-of-pearl
- This is the everyday name and is more common in shops and conversation, while nacre is the more technical term used in science.
- pearl
- A pearl is a finished gem formed from nacre, while nacre is the material itself.
Word family
- nacreous adjective
- having the shiny, pearly look of nacre
- nacred adjective
- decorated or lined with nacre (rare)
Commonly confused: nacre or nectar?
nacre vs nectar
Nectar is the sweet liquid flowers make for insects, and is unrelated to shells or pearls despite the similar sound.
Practice
The inside of an oyster shell is lined with ___, the same shiny material that forms pearls.
Choose one answer.
Nacre is the iridescent layer that lines mollusk shells and forms pearls. Coral is tempting because it also comes from the sea, but it is a different material made by different animals.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “nacre”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.