GANGUE, noun gang. [See Gang.] In mining, the earthy, stony, saline, or combustible substance, which contains the ore of metals, or is only mingled with it without being chimically combined, is called the gangue or matrix of the ore. It differs from a mineralizer, in not being combined with the metal.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI