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Chalk vs Talcum - What's the difference?

chalk | talcum |

As nouns the difference between chalk and talcum

is that chalk is a soft, white, powdery limestone while talcum is powdered and perfumed talc for toilet use.

As verbs the difference between chalk and talcum

is that chalk is to apply chalk to anything, such as the tip of a billiard cue while talcum is to perfume with talcum powder.

chalk

English

Alternative forms

* chaulk (dated)

Noun

  • (uncountable) A soft, white, powdery limestone.
  • (countable) A piece of chalk, or, more often, processed compressed chalk, that is used for drawing and for writing on a blackboard.
  • Tailor's chalk.
  • (uncountable, climbing) A white powdery substance used to prevent hands slipping from holds when climbing, sometimes but not always limestone-chalk.
  • (US, military, countable) A platoon-sized group of airborne soldiers.
  • (US, sports, chiefly, basketball) The prediction that there will be no upsets, and the favored competitor will win.
  • * {{quote-news, 1982, March 22, Phil Musick, And the pick here is - Georgetown over Houston, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette citation
  • , passage=OK, let's get rid of the chalk' players right away. The ' chalk likes North Carolina. Dean Smith has taken Carolina to the Final Four six times.}}
  • * {{quote-news, 1995, April 6, , Notes on a Scorecard, Los Angeles Times citation
  • , passage=Excuse us for sticking with the chalk , but the predicted winners are Afternoon Deelites in the Derby, Oliver McCall over Larry Holmes, Nick Faldo in the Masters, and Al Unser Jr. in the Grand Prix.}}
  • * {{quote-news, 2008, March 24, Jason Bauman, Non-news of the week: Obama picks North Carolina, Beacon-News, city=Aurora, Illinois citation
  • , passage=Instead, he played the chalk and selected the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament.}}

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To apply chalk to anything, such as the tip of a billiard cue.
  • To record something, as on a blackboard, using chalk.
  • To use powdered chalk to mark the lines on a playing field.
  • (figuratively) To record a score or event, as if on a chalkboard.
  • To manure (land) with chalk.
  • (Mortimer)
  • To make white, as if with chalk; to make pale; to bleach.
  • (Tennyson)
  • * Herbert
  • Let a bleak paleness chalk the door.

    Derived terms

    * chalk up to * chalky * different as chalk and cheese * chalk line * by a long chalk

    See also

    * (wikipedia) * *

    talcum

    English

    Noun

    (-)
  • Powdered and perfumed talc for toilet use.
  • Verb

    (en verb)
  • To perfume with talcum powder.