1.
[syn: tombac, tombak, tambac]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Tombac \Tom"bac\, n. [Pg. tambaca,tambaque, fr. Malay tamb[=a]ga
copper; cf. Skr. t[=a]mraka; cf. F. tombac.] (Metal.)
An alloy of copper and zinc, resembling brass, and containing
about 84 per cent of copper; -- called also German brass or
Dutch brass. It is very malleable and ductile, and when
beaten into thin leaves is sometimes called Dutch metal.
The addition of arsenic makes white tombac. [Written also
tombak, and tambac.]
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
tombac
n 1: an alloy of copper and zinc (and sometimes arsenic) used to
imitate gold in cheap jewelry and for gilding [syn:
tombac, tombak, tambac]