Modern science is filled with similar terms that put people into a huge dilemma about their properties, use and characteristics. However, crystal and crystalline are two words having the same first word, that is ”crystal”. One is a specialised word, i.e., crystal, whereas another is a generalised word, i.e., crystalline. The study about crystals is done extensively in earth sciences. These two words are used in different field of observation or study, and they are different parts of speech. In this article, we will study the difference between crystal and crystalline in detail.
Crystal vs Crystalline
The main difference between crystal and crystalline is that Crystal refers to a specific kind of rock, which is constituted of atoms and well structured in repeatedly all spatial directions. Whereas the rocks that possess the qualities, characteristics and properties of crystals are called crystalline. Also, the term crystal is a noun, whereas the term crystalline is an adjective.
Crystal is a noun. The term crystal has its origin in a Greek word. Crystal refers to a specific kind of rock, which is constituted of atoms and well structured in repeatedly all spatial directions. “Krystallos” is the base word from which crystal has been derived. Crystals can be used only to refer to those rocks in which the atoms are arranged in a specific direction. A crystal is a singular noun and refers to only one crystal.
The term crystalline is an adjective. The crystalline term has its origin in the Latin word. The rocks that possess the qualities, characteristics, and properties of crystals are called crystalline. “Crystalline” is the word from which the term crystalline has been derived. The use of crystalline is not limited to any field. It refers to something distinct or clear. A crystalline material may contain many tiny crystals bonded together.
Comparison Table Between Crystal and Crystalline
| Parameters of Comparison | Crystal | Crystalline |
| Parts of Speech | Crystal is a noun. | The term crystalline is an adjective. |
| Origin | The term crystal has its origin in a Greek word. | The term crystalline has its origin in the Latin word. |
| Definition | Crystal refers to a specific kind of rock, constituted of atoms and well structured in repeatedly all spatial directions. | The rocks that possess the qualities, characteristics and properties of crystals are called crystalline. |
| Base word | “Krystallos” is the base word from which crystal has been derived. | “Crystalline” is the word from which the term crystalline has been derived. |
| Use | Crystals can be used only to refer to those rocks in which the atoms are arranged in a specific direction. | The use of crystalline is not limited to any field. It refers to something distinct or clear. |
| Refer to | A crystal is a singular noun and refers to only one crystal. | A crystalline material may contain many tiny crystals bonded together. |
What is Crystal?
The term crystal is generally used extensively in the field of geology or earth sciences. It refers to a solid element that bears ions or atoms in a well-structured manner. However, the atoms or ions need to follow a repeating fashion which generally extends up to all directions. When the crystal is taken into consideration, it refers to a single crystal only. In which the particles are arranged in an ordered manner.
Due to the regular arrangement of crystals in a crystal, it makes them sturdier in comparison to other matters such as fluid and gas. It is originated from the word “krystallos”, which means crystal, rock or ice. In computer language, the term crystal refers to a kind of human-computer interface.
What is Crystalline?
The crystal-like rocks are generally considered crystalline. Although, this term is mainly used as an adjective. Crystalline describes any mineral, object or item that possess all the qualities, characteristics and properties of a crystal. Moreover, the object must aesthetically and structurally appear like a mere crystal. Crystalline material refers to a crystalline object, and it may contain many tiny crystals bonded together.
Any clear, transparent and something which is constituted of crystals is referred to as crystalline. The crystalline objects are characterized by having a sharp outline. Some of the earth minerals that exhibit crystallinity are calcite, ice, quartz, aragonite, hydroxylapatite, graphite, etc. They vary in the type of chemical bonding they possess.
Main Differences Between Crystal and Crystalline
- Crystal is a noun. Whereas the term crystalline is an adjective.
- The term crystal has its origin in a Greek word. However, the term crystalline has its origin in the Latin word.
- Crystal refers to a specific kind of rock, which is constituted of atoms and well structured in repeatedly all spatial directions. Whereas the rocks that possess the qualities, characteristics and properties of crystals are called crystalline.
- “Krystallos” is the base word from which crystal has been derived. On the other hand, “crystalline” is the word from which the term crystalline has been derived.
- Crystals can be used only to refer to those rocks in which the atoms are arranged in a specific direction. But the use of crystalline is not limited to any field. It refers to something distinct or clear.
- A crystal is a singular noun and refers to only one crystal. However, a crystalline material may contain many tiny crystals bonded together.
Conclusion
There are many chances of people getting confused between these two terms, crystal and Crystalline, because of their similar word structure. However, these two terms are fairly different from each other. One is a specialised word, i.e., crystal, whereas another is a generalised word, i.e., crystalline. Crystals can be used only to refer to those rocks in which the atoms are arranged in a specific direction. But the use of crystalline is not limited to any field. It refers to something distinct or clear.
However, the basic difference is Crystal refers to a specific kind of rock, which is constituted of atoms and well structured in repeatedly all spatial directions. Whereas the rocks that possess the qualities, characteristics, and properties of crystals are called crystalline. Therefore, next time when someone asks you the difference between these two terms, answer confidently.
References
- https://aip.scitation.org/doi/abs/10.1063/1.2996505
- https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2011/ce/c0ce00366b