anthracene

[ an-thruh-seen ]

/ ˈæn θrəˌsin /

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noun Chemistry.

a colorless, crystalline powder, C14H12, obtained from coal tar and having a violet fluorescence: used chiefly as a source of anthraquinone and alizarin, and in the process of measuring radioactive materials.

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Origin of anthracene

First recorded in 1860–65; anthrac- + -ene

Words nearby anthracene

anthophyllite, anthotaxy, -anthous, anthozoan, anthrac-, anthracene, anthracite, anthracnose, anthraco-, anthracoid, anthracosilicosis

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use anthracene in a sentence

Anthracene is one of the last products passing over in the dry distillation of coal-tar.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I|Arnold Cooley
Anthracene is a white crystalline hydrocarbon, having a bluish fluorescence, melting at 213° C. and boiling above 360° C.
Coal|Raphael Meldola
It separates in the form of crystals from the anthracene oil on cooling, and is removed by filtration.
Coal|Raphael Meldola
The anthracene by washing with these solvents is freed from more soluble impurities, and may then contain from 30 to 80 per cent.
Coal|Raphael Meldola

Another trihydroxy-anthraquinone, although not obtained directly from anthracene, must be claimed as a tar-product.
Coal|Raphael Meldola

British Dictionary definitions for anthracene

anthracene

/ (ˈænθrəˌsiːn) /

noun

a colourless tricyclic crystalline solid having a slight blue fluorescence, used in the manufacture of chemicals, esp diphenylamine and alizarin, and as crystals in scintillation counters. Formula: C 6 H 4 (CH) 2 C 6 H 4

Word Origin for anthracene

C19: from anthrax + -ene

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

Scientific definitions for anthracene

anthracene

[ ăn′thrə-sēn′ ]

A crystalline hydrocarbon that consists of three benzene rings fused together. It is extracted from coal tar and is used to make dyes and organic chemicals. Chemical formula: C14H10.