abrasive, abradant, abrasive material (adj)

a substance that abrades or wears down

abrasive, scratchy (adj)

causing abrasion

harsh, abrasive (adj)

sharply disagreeable; rigorous

"the harsh facts of court delays"; "an abrasive character"

abrasive (Noun)

A substance or material such as sandpaper, pumice, or emery, used for cleaning, smoothing, or polishing.

abrasive (Noun)

Rock fragments, sand grains, mineral particles, used by water, wind, and ice to abrade a land surface.

abrasive (Adjective)

Producing abrasion; rough enough to wear away the outer surface.

abrasive (Adjective)

Being rough and coarse in manner or disposition; causing iiritation.

Abrasive

An abrasive is a material, often a mineral, that is used to shape or finish a workpiece through rubbing which leads to part of the workpiece being worn away. While finishing a material often means polishing it to gain a smooth, reflective surface it can also involve roughening as in satin, matte or beaded finishes. Abrasives are extremely commonplace and are used very extensively in a wide variety of industrial, domestic, and technological applications. This gives rise to a large variation in the physical and chemical composition of abrasives as well as the shape of the abrasive. Common uses for abrasives include grinding, polishing, buffing, honing, cutting, drilling, sharpening, lapping, and sanding. Files act by abrasion but are not classed as abrasives as they are a shaped bar of metal. However, diamond files are a form of coated abrasive.