Niter

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Niter \Ni"ter\, Nitre \Ni"tre\, n. [F. nitre, L. nitrum native
     soda, natron, Gr. ?; cf. Ar. nit[=u]n, natr[=u]n natron. Cf.
     {Natron}.]
     1. (Chem.) A white crystalline semitransparent salt;
        potassium nitrate; saltpeter. See {Saltpeter}.
        [1913 Webster]


  
     2. (Chem.) Native sodium carbonate; natron. [Obs.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              For though thou wash thee with niter, and take thee
              much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me.
                                                    --Jer. ii. 22.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     {Cubic niter}, a deliquescent salt, sodium nitrate, found as
        a native incrustation, like niter, in Peru and Chile,
        whence it is known also as {Chile saltpeter}.
  
     {Niter bush} (Bot.), a genus ({Nitraria}) of thorny shrubs
        bearing edible berries, and growing in the saline plains
        of Asia and Northern Africa.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  niter
       n : (KNO3) used especially as a fertilizer and explosive [syn: {potassium
           nitrate}, {saltpeter}, {saltpetre}, {nitre}]