Meanings
portland cement1
plural portland cements
- countableuncountableAlternative letter-case form of Portland cement.
Portland cement2
plural Portland cements · alternative portland cement
- countableuncountableA finely-ground powder made by heating and pulverizing limestone and clay.
Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) is the world's most common form of cement. The blue plaque dedicated to inventor Joseph Aspdin describes OPC as "one of mankind's most important manufactured materials".
2023 December 27, Richard Foster, “Building a greener future”, in RAIL, number 999, page 36
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna cement that hardens under water; made by heating limestone and clay in a kiln and pulverizing the result
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From its resemblance to limestone from Portland in Dorset.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan pòrtland
- pòrtlandcement made by heating and pulverizing limestone and clay
Portuguese cimento Portland
- cimento Portlandcement made by heating and pulverizing limestone and clay
Cite this entry
portland cement. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/portland%20cement
“portland cement.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/portland%20cement. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “portland cement,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/portland%20cement.
Source: portland cement on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.