silex

noun

1. (archaic, countable, uncountable)Flint.
2. (countable, uncountable)A finely ground relatively pure form of silicas used as a paint filler etc.

   “Every little cold gust that I observed in the Colorado country had this corkscrew character […] an auger, of diameter varying from an inch to a thousand feet, capable of altering its direction so as to bore curved holes, revolving with incalculable rapidity, and armed with a cutting edge of silex.”

3. (dated)A vacuum coffee maker.

   “The Navy uses several types of coffee makers – urns, silexes, and percolators. Each type requires special care in making good coffee.”

   “Remembering my daily habits, Papa-san brewed the coffee and before I had completed a local phone call, he was serving it piping hot from the Silex, still grinning as he thought of other days of coffee-making.”