rough diamonds
Unpolished precious stones
Rough diamonds are uncut, unpolished diamonds as they come from the earth—valuable but lacking the brilliance of finished gems.
The phrase extends to people with admirable qualities hidden beneath an unrefined exterior: He's a rough diamond—gruff manner, but genuinely kind.
More common in British English; Americans tend to say "diamond in the rough."
- uncutNot reduced or shortened
- facetPlane on cut stone
- rawIn original state
- potentialLatent capacity for development
- raw talentInnate ability before training
mine · Kimberley Process · gemstone · precious stones · jewel · ethical sourcing · carbon · lapidary · gem · mining · cloudy · carat · valuable · clarity · treasure · crude · prospect · natural
- Kimberley DiamondsKimberley, De Beers, kimberlite, diggers, prospectors
- Diamondscarats, facets, carat weight, brilliance, color grade
- diamond miningmine, mines, kimberlite, open pit mine, open pit mines
- diamond prospectingprospecting, kimberlite, pipes
surface quality
rough diamondssmooth stones
figurative meaning (hidden potential)
rough diamondsfinished products
Manufactured items ready for use
rough, diamond, roughly, diamonds, roughness, roughen, roughened, diamante, roughening