phosphine

[ fos-feen, -fin ]

nounChemistry.
  1. a colorless, poisonous, ill-smelling, flammable gas, PH3.

  2. any of certain organic derivatives of this compound.

Origin of phosphine

1
First recorded in 1870–75; phosph- + -ine1

Words Nearby phosphine

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use phosphine in a sentence

  • Under the name of “phosphine” this colouring-matter is still used, especially for the dyeing of leather.

    Coal | Raphael Meldola
  • Give the formula for the salt which phosphine forms with hydriodic acid.

  • Absence of change shows phosphine, quinoline yellow, or a natural dye-stuff.

    The Manufacture of Paper | Robert Walter Sindall
  • The acetylene prepared from this substance has a very characteristic odor due to impurities, the chief of these being phosphine.

  • Extremely dangerous explosive mixtures may be made by combining phosphine and air or oxygen.

    Poisons: Their Effects and Detection | Alexander Wynter Blyth

British Dictionary definitions for phosphine

phosphine

/ (ˈfɒsfiːn) /


noun
  1. a colourless flammable gas that is slightly soluble in water and has a strong fishy odour: used as a pesticide. Formula: PH 3

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012