Auric

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Pertaining to or derived from gold or its properties ; associated with or situated near the ear or hearing
2. Having qualities or characteristics of gold or golden color ; connected with the ear or the sense of hearing
3. Involving or made of gold or resembling gold in color ; relating to the ear as an anatomical or sensory part

Etymology: The word "auric" is a split personality: it descends from two different Latin words that happen to sound alike. One is "aurum," meaning gold, which gives us the sense "pertaining to gold." The other is "auris," meaning ear, which gives the sense "relating to the ear or hearing." Both were built on the same Latin suffix "-icus," which turns a noun into an adjective. The gold sense is the older and more familiar of the two. Latin "aurum" traces back through "aurora" and related forms to a root shared with words for dawn and shining, which is fitting for a metal prized for its glow. The ear sense comes from "auris," a separate Latin noun with no connection to gold, which is why the same spelling can point in two directly opposite physical directions. Most readers meet "auric" only in chemistry, where it names gold compounds, so the ear meaning is the one that surprises people. The English adjective "auric" was formed from "aura" plus "-ic," so the ancient Latin roots are reached through that intermediate step.

Synonyms: golden, gold, gilded, luxurious, rich

Antonyms: non-golden, plain, common, ordinary, dull