Also tern-. [prob. f. TERNE a.1, dull, lacking brilliancy, in reference to the dullness of terne-plate, in comparison with tin-plate.] Thin sheet-iron coated with an alloy of lead and tin; an inferior kind of tin-plate; a sheet or plate of this. Also attrib.
1858. Simmonds, Dict. Trade, Terne-plates, thin sheet-iron coated with an amalgam of tin and lead.
1880. Echo, 15 Oct., 2/4. Some unscrupulous packers are using terne plates instead of tin plates.
1892. Pall Mall G., 10 Dec., 7/1. Inferior plates, known as tern-plates and mostly used for roofing, contain a great deal of lead.
1894. [see TAGGER1 4].
1907. G. E. Duckering, Parl. Rep. Tinning Metals, 8. No evidence of lead absorption is to be found among terne-plate workers.
