Flint, n.

n. [A.-S. flint, Sw. flinta, flintsteen, Dan. flint, flintsteen, M. L. Ger. vlint, vlintstein, O. H. Ger. flins, M. H. Ger. vlins, allied to Gr. πλίνθος, brick; whence Ger. flinte, a light gun with a fire-lock and a flint-stone in it.]

1. (Min.) A variety of quartz, of a yellowish, bluish-gray, or grayish-black color, composed of silica, with traces of iron, and supposed to be collections of animalcular shells, aggregations around sponges, or other organic substances. It is very hard, and strikes fire with steel.
2. A piece of flinty stone used in some fire-arms to strike fire, now superseded by percussion caps.