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I have read today a sentence I haven't understood, simply it doesn't have sense to me:

Ceramics can be pottery made of hardened clay.

I have looking for the meaning of pottery and ceramic and are the same: 'Cerámica', so in Spanish language, I don't know how can I give sense to the sentence. I would be glad if someone can orient me a bit.

In my poor opinion, I think it's better:

Ceramics can be made of hardened clay.

2 Answers 2

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There is a difference of nuance between ceramics and pottery.

Pottery is a traditional craft, using natural clays and hand tools (such as a potter's wheel) to make pots, jugs, plates etc. And by extension, "pottery" is a type of homeware made of fired clay.

Ceramics are a class of substances made by sintering a non-metallic mineral at high temperatures. These include substances like silicon carbide and high-temperature superconductors, as well as traditional clay pot making.

As an activity, "ceramics" sounds either more artistic, or more scientific, than the traditional craft of "pottery".

Ceramics includes traditional pottery, but a silicon carbide cutting tool is ceramic; it isn't pottery.

You might find a useful comparison between

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  • Thank you for this great answer.
    – Carmoreno
    Jul 28, 2021 at 2:27
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I have found an answer, pottery references the products. Ceramic is the art of making products (pottery) using clay. But, for example, I could make pottery using gypsum too. So, the translation of this sentence in Spanish could be:

La Cerámica puede ser productos hechos de arcilla endurecida.

Anyway, I consider that the second sentence omitting pottery is valid.

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