pearl

/pərl/

/pəl/

Other forms: pearls; pearled; pearling

A pearl is a white, round gem formed inside an oyster or clam. Pearl can also refer to something that resembles the gem in color or shape, like a pearl of sweat that forms on your forehead when you're hot.

Why is a pearl called a pearl? It isn't clear where the Medieval Latin word perla comes from. Some believe it refers to the shape of the shell in which pearls are found: either pear, like the shapely fruit, or perna, literally "ham," because the shell is shaped like a pig's leg.

Definitions of pearl

1. noun

   a smooth lustrous round structure inside the shell of a clam or oyster; much valued as a jewel
   types:

   seed pearl

   a small imperfect pearl

   type of:

   gem, jewel, precious stone

   a precious or semiprecious stone incorporated into a piece of jewelry
2. noun

   a shade of white the color of bleached bones
   synonyms: bone, ivory, off-white

   type of:

   white, whiteness

   the quality or state of the achromatic color of greatest lightness (bearing the least resemblance to black)
3. noun

   a shape that is spherical and small
   synonyms: bead, drop

   types:

   dewdrop

   a drop of dew

   teardrop

   anything shaped like a falling drop (as a pendant gem on an earring)

   type of:

   sphere

   a solid figure bounded by a spherical surface (including the space it encloses)
4. verb

   gather pearls, from oysters in the ocean
   type of:

   collect, garner, gather, pull together

   assemble or get together