fusain

noun

fu·​sain

ˈfyüˌzān

plural -s

: a dull constituent closely resembling charcoal that is present in banded bituminous coals and causes much of the dust in coal mines compare clarain, durain, vitrain

Word History

Etymology

French, spindle tree, charcoal made from spindle-tree wood, fusain, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin fusagin-, fusago, from Latin fusus spindle; from the fact that the wood of the tree was used for spindles

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