Word.ws English Dictionary

Rupert's drop

Rupert's drop noun: a glass bead created by dripping molten glass into cold water so it solidifies into a tadpole shape with a very tough head but a long fragile tail which, if damaged, causes the bead to disintegrate explosively.

rupert's drop: a glass bead created by dripping molten glass into cold water so it solidifies into a tadpole shape...
Image: Mg3kc, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun

Rupert's drop (plural Rupert's drops)

  1. A glass bead created by dripping molten glass into cold water so it solidifies into a tadpole shape with a very tough head but a long fragile tail which, if damaged, causes the bead to disintegrate explosively.

Synonyms of Rupert's drop

All synonyms of Rupert's drop

Forms of Rupert's drop

pluralRupert's drops

Origin of Rupert's drop

Named after Prince Rupert of the Rhine, nephew of Charles I, who brought them to England in 1660.

Questions about Rupert's drop

What does Rupert's drop mean?
Rupert's drop means a glass bead created by dripping molten glass into cold water so it solidifies into a tadpole shape with a very tough head but a long fragile tail which, if damaged, causes the bead to disintegrate explosively.
What part of speech is Rupert's drop?
Rupert's drop is a noun.
What is the plural of Rupert's drop?
The plural of Rupert's drop is Rupert's drops.

Words near Rupert's drop in the dictionary

  1. Rupelian
  2. rupellary
  3. Rupenide
  4. Rupenides
  5. Rupert
  6. Rupert's drop
  7. Rupert's drops
  8. Rupert's Land
  9. Rupert's tear
  10. Rupert's tears
  11. Ruperto

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: Rupert's drop (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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