DictionaryRoot: gypsos
Greek
gypsos
chalk
1 / 1

noun
gypsum
JIP-sum/ˈdʒɪpsəm/
A soft calcium sulfate mineral used to make plaster.
Etymology
Greek gypsos meant “chalk”; the English word names the mineral used to make plaster. The Greek term is perhaps of Semitic origin, with comparable Arabic and Hebrew words meaning “plaster.”