iridium
/ɪˈɹɪd.i.əm/ noun
Forms iridiums
- noun (chemistry)(uncountable) A chemical element with an atomic number of 77: a very hard, brittle, silvery-white transition metal of the platinum group.
- noun (countable) An atom of this element.
Synonyms
Etymology
New Latin iridium, from Classical Latin iris + -ium, from Ancient Greek ἶρις (îris, “rainbow”), because of the bright colour of many of the element's salts.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A rare metallic element, of the same group as platinum, which it much resembles, being silver-white, but harder, and brittle, and indifferent to most corrosive agents. With the exception of osmium, it is the heaviest substance known, its specific gravity being 22.4.
Etymology [NL., fr. L. iris, iridis, the rainbow. So called from the iridescence of some of its solutions. See Iris.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “iridium”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details