porcelain

1 of 2

noun

por·​ce·​lain ˈpȯr-s(ə-)lən How to pronounce porcelain (audio)
Synonyms of porcelainnext
1
: a hard, fine-grained, sonorous, nonporous, and usually translucent and white ceramic ware that consists essentially of kaolin, quartz, and a feldspathic rock and is fired at a high temperature

called also hard-paste porcelain, true porcelain

2
: soft-paste porcelain
porcelainlike
ˈpȯr-s(ə-)lən-ˌlīk How to pronounce porcelain (audio)
adjective
porcelaneous adjective
or porcellaneous
ˌpȯr-sə-ˈlā-nē-əs How to pronounce porcelain (audio)

porcelaneous

2 of 2

adjective

por·​ce·​la·​neous
variants or porcellaneous
¦⸗sə¦lānēəs How to pronounce porcelaneous (audio)
: of, relating to, or resembling porcelain
porcelaneous shells
porcelaneous glass

Examples of porcelain in a Sentence

Noun The bowl is made of porcelain.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
The porcelain faces on the surround are from the Chelsea Flea. — Wendy Goodman, Curbed, 17 Oct. 2026 This porcelain often featured rich blue patterns drawn against a white background. — Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026 Everything is served on antique porcelain, mis-matched in design, yet unified in style. — Julia Wytrazek, TheWeek, 13 Oct. 2026 Served on Vista Alegre porcelain, recent dishes from Tap’s Local Stars program have included sautéed prawns with strawberry gazpacho, roasted cod in pil-pil sauce, veal terrine, and Dom Rodrigo, an Algarve dessert made with egg yolks and almonds. — Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 12 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for porcelain

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French porcelaine cowrie shell, porcelain, from Italian porcellana, from porcello vulva, literally, little pig, from Latin porcellus, diminutive of porcus pig, vulva; from the shape of the shell — more at farrow

Adjective

Italian porcellana porcelain + English -eous

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of porcelain was circa 1530

Phrases Containing porcelain

Browse Nearby Words

porcate
porcelain
porcelain ampelopsis
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Porcelain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/porcelain. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

porcelain

noun
por·​ce·​lain ˈpōr-s(ə-)lən How to pronounce porcelain (audio)
ˈpȯr-
: a hard white ceramic ware used especially for dishes and chemical utensils

Medical Definition

porcelain

noun
por·​ce·​lain ˈpōr-s(ə-)lən, ˈpȯr- How to pronounce porcelain (audio)
: a hard, fine-grained, nonporous, and usually translucent and white ceramic ware that consists essentially of kaolin, quartz, and feldspar and that has many uses in dentistry

More from Merriam-Webster on porcelain

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for porcelain

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about porcelain

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compunction

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All