noun
emery
EH-muh-ree
noun
1
A hard, dark mineral used, in powdered or abrasive form, for grinding, sanding, or polishing.
"She smoothed the rough edge of the wood with emery paper."
"An emery board is used to file and shape nails."
How to Use Emery
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA gritty mineral used to make sanding and polishing tools, like an emery board for nails.
Common pairings
emery board
emery paper
emery cloth
Word Forms
emeried past tense, emeries plural, emeries singular
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She smoothed the rough edge of the wood with _____ paper.
Etymology
From French émeri, ultimately from Italian smeriglio, a name for the abrasive mineral.