This page brings together all 38 minerals that start with the letter W, running alphabetically from “Wad” to “Wyartite.” These naturally occurring solids range from common ores to rare collector’s specimens, and many of them play an important role in industry. You’ll find minerals used to make tungsten, zinc, and tantalum, along with colorful crystals prized by collectors and gemstones cut for jewelry.
Minerals are solid substances that form naturally in the earth, each with a specific chemical makeup and an orderly internal structure. People have valued them for thousands of years, using bright stones like wulfenite and willemite, which glow under ultraviolet light, in displays and collections around the world. They shape much of daily life, appearing in everything from steel and ceramics to paints and electronics.
Below you’ll find the table with mineral names and their descriptions.
Mineral: The name of each mineral that starts with W, listed in alphabetical order so you can quickly scan the page and find the one you’re looking for.
Description: A short, plain-language summary of what the mineral is, what it’s made of, where it forms, and how people use or recognize it.
Minerals
| Mineral |
|---|
| Wad |
| Wadsleyite |
| Wagnerite |
| Wairakite |
| Wakefieldite |
| Walstromite |
| Wardite |
| Wavellite |
| Weddellite |
| Weeksite |
| Wegscheiderite |
| Weinrichite |
| Wenkite |
| Wermlandite |
| Wernerite |
| Westgrenite |
| Whewellite |
| Whitlockite |
| Wickenburgite |
| Wightmanite |
| Wilkeite |
| Willemite |
| Williamsite |
| Wiluite |
| Winchite |
| Witherite |
| Wittichenite |
| Wodginite |
| Wolfeite |
| Wolframite |
| Wollastonite |
| Woodhouseite |
| Woodruffite |
| Woodwardite |
| Wulfenite |
| Wurtzite |
| Wustite |
| Wyartite |
Descriptions
Wad
A soft, earthy mass of mixed manganese oxides that occurs as a dark brown to black coating or deposit. It is not a single species but a general name for impure manganese ore.
Wadsleyite
A high-pressure magnesium iron silicate believed to be a major component of Earth’s mantle transition zone. It forms deep underground and is rarely seen at the surface.
Wagnerite
A magnesium iron phosphate fluoride mineral that forms yellow, brown, or greenish crystals. It is found in metamorphic rocks and some hydrothermal veins.
Wairakite
A calcium-rich zeolite mineral that forms in hot, volcanic geothermal areas. It was first identified at Wairakei in New Zealand, after which it is named.
Wakefieldite
A rare vanadate mineral containing rare-earth elements like yttrium or cerium. It forms small, brownish to yellow crystals in oxidized ore zones.
Walstromite
A rare barium calcium silicate that forms small, colorless to white crystals. It is mainly found in metamorphosed limestone deposits in California.
Wardite
A hydrated sodium aluminum phosphate that forms blue-green to pale green pyramid-shaped crystals. It is prized by collectors for its unusual crystal form.
Wavellite
A hydrated aluminum phosphate famous for forming radiating, star-like clusters of green, yellow, or white needles. These distinctive spherical sprays make it a collector favorite.
Weddellite
A calcium oxalate mineral, chemically the same as a common component of kidney stones. It was first found in sediments of the Weddell Sea in Antarctica.
Weeksite
A uranium silicate mineral that forms yellow, fibrous, or earthy crusts. It is mildly radioactive and occurs in oxidized uranium deposits.
Wegscheiderite
A sodium carbonate bicarbonate mineral that forms colorless to white crystals. It is found in evaporite deposits associated with trona.
Weinrichite
A rare hydrated zinc arsenate mineral. It forms as small crystals in the oxidized zones of arsenic-bearing ore deposits.
Wenkite
A complex barium calcium silicate sulfate mineral that forms yellow to brown crystals. It occurs in metamorphic rocks and is quite rare.
Wermlandite
A rare layered magnesium aluminum hydroxide mineral with a hexagonal structure. It forms greenish plates in iron and manganese ore deposits.
Wernerite
An older name for scapolite, a group of aluminosilicate minerals. It forms prismatic crystals that can fluoresce bright yellow under ultraviolet light.
Westgrenite
A rare bismuth tantalum oxide mineral, now usually classified within the microlite group. It forms tiny crystals in pegmatites.
Whewellite
A calcium oxalate mineral that forms colorless to white crystals, sometimes in coal seams. Like weddellite, it is chemically related to kidney stones.
Whitlockite
A calcium magnesium phosphate mineral found in phosphate rocks and meteorites. A similar compound also occurs in human bones and teeth.
Wickenburgite
A rare hydrated lead calcium aluminum silicate that forms colorless to white crystals. It was first discovered near Wickenburg, Arizona.
Wightmanite
A rare magnesium borate hydroxide mineral that forms small, colorless crystals. It is found in contact metamorphic zones near limestone.
Wilkeite
A phosphate-silicate mineral of the apatite group, now often reclassified. It forms yellow to pink granular masses in metamorphosed limestone.
Willemite
A zinc silicate mineral famous for its brilliant green fluorescence under ultraviolet light. It is an important zinc ore and a favorite among mineral collectors.
Williamsite
A translucent green variety of the serpentine mineral antigorite. It is sometimes cut and polished as an ornamental gemstone.
Wiluite
A rare boron-bearing silicate mineral related to vesuvianite. It forms green to brown crystals and was first found near the Wilui River in Russia.
Winchite
A sodium calcium magnesium amphibole mineral that forms fibrous to bladed crystals. Some asbestos-related health concerns are associated with fibrous amphiboles like it.
Witherite
A barium carbonate mineral that forms colorless, white, or gray crystals, often as pseudo-hexagonal twins. It is a minor ore of barium and is mildly poisonous.
Wittichenite
A copper bismuth sulfide mineral that forms steel-gray to silvery metallic crystals. It occurs in hydrothermal veins alongside other copper and bismuth ores.
Wodginite
A manganese tin tantalum oxide mineral that forms dark brown to black crystals. It is found in granite pegmatites and is a source of tantalum.
Wolfeite
An iron manganese phosphate hydroxide mineral that forms reddish-brown to dark crystals. It occurs in phosphate-rich pegmatites.
Wolframite
An iron manganese tungstate that is the most important ore of tungsten. It forms dark, heavy, tabular crystals and has been mined for industrial use for centuries.
Wollastonite
A calcium silicate mineral that forms white, fibrous or bladed crystals. It is widely used in ceramics, paints, and as a building material additive.
Woodhouseite
A calcium aluminum phosphate sulfate mineral that forms colorless to pink rhombohedral crystals. It occurs in hydrothermally altered rocks.
Woodruffite
A hydrated zinc manganese oxide mineral that forms dark brown to black masses. It is found in oxidized zinc deposits.
Woodwardite
A hydrated copper aluminum sulfate hydroxide mineral that forms blue to greenish crusts and spheres. It occurs in the oxidized zones of copper deposits.
Wulfenite
A lead molybdate mineral famous for its bright orange, yellow, or red tabular crystals. Its vivid color and thin square plates make it a highly sought-after collector’s mineral.
Wurtzite
A zinc iron sulfide mineral, chemically similar to sphalerite but with a different crystal structure. It forms brownish to black crystals in hydrothermal deposits.
Wustite
An iron oxide mineral that is rare in nature because it is unstable at the surface. It is important in steelmaking and as a component of Earth’s deep interior.
Wyartite
A rare uranium calcium carbonate mineral that forms violet to black crystals. It is highly radioactive and one of the few minerals containing pentavalent uranium.