Gypsum – A soft white mineral commonly used to make plaster of Paris, fertiliser and wall plaster in the building trade.

(Pronounced jip-sum)

To remember the definition of the word gypsum, use the following mnemonic:

The Egyptians did a sum (gypsum) to work out how much soft white mineral they needed to make plaster for the pyramids and fertiliser for their crops.

Examples of gypsum in a sentence

The wall was made of cement and gypsum plaster.

Adding gypsum to fertilizer allowed for better crops as it provides more minerals for the plants.

Gypsum plaster is a great material to use in sculpting and moulding arts.