Emily Dickinson Lexicon

DI'A-MOND, n. [di'mond; Fr. diamant; It. and Sp. diamante; G. and D. diamant; L. adamas; Gr. αδαμας, αδαμαντος, whence adamant, from the Celtic; W. ehedvaen, moving stone; ehed, to fly or move, and maen, stone; a name first given to the lode-stone. See Adamant.]

1. A mineral, gem, or precious stone, of the most valuable kind, remarkable for its hardness, as it scratches all other minerals. When pure, the diamond is usually clear and transparent, but it is sometimes colored. In its rough state, it is commonly in the form of a roundish pebble, or of octahedral crystals. It consists of pure carbon, and when heated to 14º Wedgwood, and exposed to a current of air, it is gradually, but completely combustible. When pure and transparent, it is said to be of the first water. – Encyc. Kirwan. Cleaveland.
2. A very small printing letter.
3. A figure, otherwise called a rhombus.