Word of the day · 14 September 2026
amalgam
/əˈmælɡəm/
noun
A mixture or blend of different elements; also a mercury alloy used historically in dentistry and metallurgy.
In a sentence
- The neighborhood is an amalgam of warehouses, cafes and small workshops.
- Her accent is an amalgam of childhood years abroad and a decade in Glasgow.
- The report is an amalgam of three earlier studies, rewritten as one argument.
In an image
Origin
From Medieval Latin amalgama, likely through Arabic al-malgham, tied to the soft metal paste made when mercury meets another metal.
History
Alchemists and metalworkers needed a name for the peculiar blend mercury forms with gold or silver. Dentists later used silver amalgam for fillings. In ordinary English the technical sense loosened into any careful mix: an amalgam of styles, voters or memories. The word still carries a hint of deliberate combining, not a random pile.
Nearby words
blend · alloy · composite
A word for mixtures that stick: metals, cultures, habits and ideas fused into one thing.