Definition of "placer" [pla•cer•plac•er]

• A glacial or alluvial deposit of sand or gravel containing eroded particles of valuable minerals. (noun)
• A place where a placer deposit is washed to extract its mineral content. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "In addition, it was accepted that some groups knew how to take advantage of any rich ores found in placer deposits in streams."
• "They then wanted to gather the gold, and Marshall threatened to shoot them if they attempted it; but these men had sense enough to know that if "placer" - gold existed at Coloma, it would also be found farther down-stream, and they gradually"
• "As Dalton and I learned this morning, season six’s third-placer is every bit as level-headed off the Project Runway set."