Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Quicksilver
Quick′silˊver
,Noun.
[]
Quick
living + silver
; – so called from its fluidity; cf. G. quecksilber
, L. argentum vivum
. See Quick
, Adj.
(Chem.)
The metal mercury; – so called from its resemblance to liquid silver.
Quicksilver horizon
, a mercurial artificial horizon. See under
– Horizon
. Quicksilver water
, a solution of mercury nitrate used in artificial silvering; quick water.
Webster 1828 Edition
Quicksilver
QUICK'SILVER
,Noun.
Mercury, a metal found both native and in the state of ore, in mines, in various parts of the world, and so remarkably fusible as to be congealable only with the intense cold indicated by 39 degrees or 40 degrees below zero, on Fahrenheit's thermometer. It is the heaviest of the metals, next to platina and gold. It is used in various arts and in medicine.