leverite

n. (also leaverite) a worthless stone or rock, especially one mistaken as being valuable. Subjects: English, Environment, Slang

Editorial Note: Paul Dickson writes in Family Words (1998, p. 79), “Heaverite, according to Raymond J. Nelson of Cody, Wyoming, is a rock that, upon examination, is only good to ‘heave ’er right now.’ Geologist Davide Dattie of Spring Valley, Minnesota, reports Nebulite is a rock you cannot identify—a rock of unknown or nebulous origin.” Etymological Note: As explained in the citations, “leverite” is a jocular transformation of “leaver ’er right (there).” The -ite suffix is used to form the names of minerals and of organisms found in fossils, among other things.

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Citations: 1979 Eliot Wigginton, et al. Foxfire 5 (June 1) p. 251: I always carry a rock hammer and a gunny sack, and when I see a likely piece of jasper or agate, I chip a corner to see how it holds up. Like as not, the whole stone may shatter making it into leaverite (leave-’er-right there where you found it). 1979 Anne H. Oman Washington Post (Weekend-10) (Nov. 16) “A Madness for Moonstones”: “It’s ‘leaverite,’” says Smith of one specimen: “Leave ’er right there.” But after a few more pans of sand the kids hit paydirt. 1985 Joe Doggett Houston Chronicle (Feb. 13) “You can get the fever fishing for gold” p. 7: Leaverite, as in “leave-her-right.” Leave her right there. It’s just another damn rock, and if you tourists keep toting them home, the Yukon will be flat as Dallas. Now, if you’re finished prospecting, I’ll show you something. 1997 George Foster Post-Intelligencer (Seattle, Washington) (July 14) “The Spirit Of The Klondike Lives On The Sourdoughs Of Today Are Willing To Settle For A Speck, A Fleck Or A Flake” p. B1: Bartolotta demonstrated his panning technique by shaking a plastic container resembling a Chinese wok. He explained that by moving the pan, the lighter material is suspended in the soupy water of the stream bottom “so that heavier material such as gold sinks to the bottom.” “See that’s leverite,” he said, pointing to a tiny, nondescript stone in the pan. “Leave-’er-right there because she ain’t worth nothing,” he said with a laugh. 2007 Don Hopey @ Rock River, Wyoming Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania) (June 24) “Dinosaurs are gone, but their bones are all about”: “What you’ve got there,” he said with a grin, pointing to a cup-sized stone picked up by one of the searchers, “is probably leverite, as in ‘leave her right there, it ain’t no good.’”

Posted 25 Jun 07 | Permalink | Tell a Friend

Reader comments:

I find it fascinating how much fun
words can be and these examples are
an excellent demonstration of this.
Thank you.

by Donald L. Vick 22 Aug 07, 0436 GMT