copper

«copper» in Mova's school dictionary: a reddish-brown metal that conducts electricity and heat… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

noun (copper — uncountable; coppers for coins, police officers); adjective (copper)

meaning for a pupil

1) Copper is a reddish-brown metal that conducts electricity and heat very well. tree →

2) Copper is also a reddish-brown colour. tree →

3) Coppers are small brown coins (UK). tree →

4) A copper is an informal British word for a police officer. tree →

5) A copper can also be a large metal pot, used for heating water or brewing. tree →

sense in the lessons

In science lessons copper is used for electric wires because it is a good conductor; it turns green when it reacts with air over many years (like the Statue of Liberty). Phrases: «copper wire», «copper pipes», «copper coins».

examples

• Electric wires are often made of copper. tree →
• The Statue of Liberty is green because its copper changed over time. tree →
• She has copper-coloured hair. tree →
• Copper is a good conductor of heat. tree →
• Old pennies are made of copper. tree →
• Copper pipes carry water in the house. tree →
• The copper caught the thief (old British slang). tree →
• The wood flamed up splendidly under the large brewing copper, and it sighed so deeply! tree →

note

Uncountable as a metal. Its chemical symbol is Cu. The green coating is called verdigris or patina; it is not rust (only iron rusts). Never touch exposed copper wires; electricity is dangerous.

In the corpora

• Woodlice eat their own poo to recycle copper their bodies need and clean up the garden by eating dead leaves and wood.
• Silver darkens, copper goes dull brown and then green, and bronze statues in the park grow green streaks.
• Copper slowly reacts with air and goes dull brown; vinegar with a pinch of salt makes a dull coin shiny again.
• Every kind of metal gives back its own colour: strontium red, barium green, sodium yellow, copper blue.
• The colours of fireworks come from different metals: strontium gives red, barium green, sodium yellow and copper blue.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «copper» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.