manganese
UK /ˈmæŋ.ɡəˌniːz/ · US /ˈmæŋ.ɡəˌniz/ noun
Forms manganeses manganesium manganesum
- noun (uncountable) A metallic chemical element (symbol Mn) with an atomic number of 25, not a free element in nature but often found in minerals in combination with iron, and useful in industrial alloy production.
- noun (countable) An atom of this element.
Synonyms
Etymology
From French manganèse, from Italian manganese, by alteration from Latin magnesia (“magnesia”), from Ancient Greek μαγνησία (magnēsía), after Μαγνησία (Magnēsía, “Magnesia”). Doublet of Magnesia, magnesia, and magnesium; more at magnet.
Webster’s 1913
- noun An element obtained by reduction of its oxide, as a hard, grayish white metal, fusible with difficulty, but easily oxidized.
Etymology [F. manganèse, It. mamaganese, sasso magnesio; prob. corrupted from L. magnes, because of its resemblance to the magnet. See Magnet, and cf. Magnesia.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “manganese”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details