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pum·ice

(pŭmĭs)

A light, porous, glassy lava, used in solid form as an abrasive and in powdered form as a polish and an abrasive.

tr.v. pum·iced, pum·ic·ing, pum·ic·es

To clean, polish, or smooth with pumice.

[Middle English, from Anglo-Norman pomis, from Late Latin pōmex, from Latin pūmex, alteration of spūma, foam.]

pu·miceous (py-mĭshəs, pə-) adj.

pumic·er n.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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