carbide

[ kahr-bahyd, -bid ]

noun

1. a compound of carbon with a more electropositive element or group.
2. calcium carbide.
3. a very hard mixture of sintered carbides of various heavy metals, especially tungsten carbide, used for cutting edges and dies.

carbide

/ ˈkɑːbaɪd /

noun

1. See acetylide
   a binary compound of carbon with a more electropositive element See also acetylide
2. See calcium carbide
   See calcium carbide

carbide

/ kär′bīd′ /

1. A chemical compound consisting of carbon and a more electropositive element, such as calcium or tungsten. Many carbides, especially those made of carbon and a metal, are very hard and are used to make cutting tools and abrasives.

Word History and Origins

Origin of carbide¹

First recorded in 1860–65; carb- + -ide ( def )

Example Sentences

As Diggins begins her descent toward where I’m standing at the side of the road, a grunt is barely audible above the rhythmic clacking of carbide pole tips against pavement.

From Outside Online

He found a wife in West Virginia, got a job there for Union Carbide.

From The Daily Beast

There is no America, he says, there is no democracy, there is only IBM and ITT and AT&T and Dupont, Dow, Union Carbide, and Exxon.

From The Daily Beast

Union Carbide has long claimed the blast was triggered by employee sabotage.

From The Daily Beast

Still, as with BP and Anglo-American relations, the Union Carbide question is complicated in both Washington and Delhi.

From The Daily Beast

The oil giant has nothing on United Fruit, Union Carbide, and other corporate rogues.

From The Daily Beast

The one marking the carbide was blown away, and it was two days before Dovers finally unearthed it.

From Project Gutenberg

Thus far carbide has been found industrially valuable for two other purposes.

From Project Gutenberg

If the use of carbide on a large scale substantiates the claims made for it, this is a discovery of vast importance.

From Project Gutenberg

In electric furnaces the formation of carbide depends simply on the heat of the arc, which fuses the mixture of lime and coke.

From Project Gutenberg

With the present prices of alcohol, sugar, and carbide, these processes have no commercial value.

From Project Gutenberg