crystal

UK: /ˈkrɪst^əl/ US: /ˈkrɪstəl/ ,(kris′tl)

Inflections of 'crystal' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

When both "l" and "ll" forms exist, spellings with a double "l" are correct, but rare, in US English, while those with a single "l" are not correct in UK English.

crystals

v 3rd person singular

crystalling

v pres p (Mainly UK)

crystaling

v pres p (US)

crystalled

v past (Mainly UK)

crystaled

v past (US)

crystalled

v past p (Mainly UK)

crystaled

v past p (US)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

crys•tal /ˈkrɪstəl/  n. 

1. Crystallography [uncountable] a clear, transparent mineral or glass resembling ice, like quartz.
2. a piece of such mineral, cut and used as decoration:
   [countable] glimmering crystals on her necklace.
3. Crystallography a single grain of a crystallike substance:
   [countable] A few crystals of sugar fell to the floor.
4. Ceramics glass of fine quality and a high degree of brilliance:
   [uncountable] a goblet of Orrefors crystal.
5. Ceramics glassware, esp. for the table and ornamental objects, made of such glass:
   [uncountable] Put out the china and the crystal.
6. Time the glass or plastic cover over the face of a watch:
   [countable] The blow to his wrist had shattered the crystal on his watch.
7. Electronics [countable] a quartz crystal shaped to vibrate at a particular frequency, used to control the timing of a watch.

adj. 

8. Crystallography made of crystal.
9. Crystallography resembling crystal;
   clear;
   transparent:
   [before a noun] the crystal waters of the Aegean Sea.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

crys•tal  (kris′tl), n., adj., v., -taled, -tal•ing or (esp. Brit.) -talled, -tal•ling. 
n. 

1. Crystallography a clear, transparent mineral or glass resembling ice.
2. Crystallography the transparent form of crystallized quartz.
3. Chemistry a solid body having a characteristic internal structure and enclosed by symmetrically arranged plane surfaces, intersecting at definite and characteristic angles.
4. Chemistry anything made of or resembling such a substance.
5. Crystallography a single grain or mass of a crystalline substance.
6. Ceramics glass of fine quality and a high degree of brilliance.
7. Ceramics articles, esp. glassware for the table and ornamental objects, made of such a glass.
8. Time the glass or plastic cover over the face of a watch.
9. [Radio.]
   • Radio and Television the piece of germanium, silicon, galena, or the like forming the essential part of a crystal detector.
   • Radio and Television the crystal detector itself.
10. Electronics a quartz crystal ground in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped, which vibrates strongly at one frequency when electric voltages of that frequency are placed across opposite sides: used to control the frequency of an oscillator (crystal oscillator,) as of a radio transmitter.
11. Drugs, Slang Terms [Slang.] any stimulant drug in powder form, as methamphetamine or PCP.

adj. 

12. Crystallography composed of crystal.
13. Crystallography resembling crystal;
    clear;
    transparent.
14. Radio and Television pertaining to or employing a crystal detector.
15. indicating the fifteenth event of a series, as a wedding anniversary. See table under wedding anniversary. 

v.t. 

16. Crystallography to make into crystal;
    crystallize.
17. Crystallography to cover or coat with, or as if with, crystal (usually fol. by over).

• Greek krýstallos clear ice, rock crystal, derivative of krystaínein to freeze; see cryo-
• Medieval Latin cristallum, Latin crystallum
• Middle English cristal(le), Old English cristalla bef. 1000

crys′tal•like′, adj. 

Crys•tal  (kris′tl), n. 

1. Place Names a city in SE Minnesota, near Minneapolis. 25,543.
2. a female given name.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

crystal / ˈkrɪst^əl/ noun

1. a piece of solid substance, such as quartz, with a regular shape in which plane faces intersect at definite angles, due to the regular internal structure of its atoms, ions, or molecules
2. a single grain of a crystalline substance
3. anything resembling a crystal, such as a piece of cut glass
4. a highly transparent and brilliant type of glass, often used in cut-glass tableware, ornaments, etc
5. (as modifier): a crystal chandelier
6. something made of or resembling crystal
7. crystal glass articles collectively
8. a crystalline element used in certain electronic devices as a detector, oscillator, transducer, etc
9. (as modifier): crystal pick-up, crystal detector
10. a transparent cover for the face of a watch, usually of glass or plastic
11. (modifier) of or relating to a crystal or the regular atomic arrangement of crystals: crystal structure, crystal lattice

adjective

1. resembling crystal; transparent: crystal water

Etymology: Old English cristalla, from Latin crystallum, from Greek krustallos ice, crystal, from krustainein to freeze