English Dictionary |
ALUM
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Dictionary entry overview: What does alum mean?
• ALUM (noun)
The noun ALUM has 4 senses:
1. a white crystalline double sulfate of aluminum: the ammonium double sulfate of aluminum
2. a white crystalline double sulfate of aluminum: the potassium double sulfate of aluminum
3. a person who has received a degree from a school (high school or college or university)
4. a double sulphate of aluminum and potassium that is used as an astringent (among other things)
Familiarity information: ALUM used as a noun is uncommon.
Dictionary entry details
Sense 1
Meaning:
A white crystalline double sulfate of aluminum: the ammonium double sulfate of aluminum
Classified under:
Nouns denoting substances
Synonyms:
alum; ammonia alum; ammonium alum
Hypernyms ("alum" is a kind of...):
Al; aluminium; aluminum; atomic number 13 (a silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite)
double salt (a solution of two simple salts that forms a single substance on crystallization)
Sense 2
Meaning:
A white crystalline double sulfate of aluminum: the potassium double sulfate of aluminum
Classified under:
Nouns denoting substances
Synonyms:
alum; potash alum; potassium alum
Hypernyms ("alum" is a kind of...):
Al; aluminium; aluminum; atomic number 13 (a silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite)
double salt (a solution of two simple salts that forms a single substance on crystallization)
Sense 3
Meaning:
A person who has received a degree from a school (high school or college or university)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting people
Synonyms:
alum; alumna; alumnus; grad; graduate
Hypernyms ("alum" is a kind of...):
bookman; scholar; scholarly person; student (a learned person (especially in the humanities); someone who by long study has gained mastery in one or more disciplines)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "alum"):
Ivy Leaguer (a student or graduate at an Ivy League school)
old boy (a former male pupil of a school)
Sense 4
Meaning:
A double sulphate of aluminum and potassium that is used as an astringent (among other things)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("alum" is a kind of...):
astringent; astringent drug; styptic (a drug that causes contraction of body tissues and canals)
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