antimony

[ an-tuh-moh-nee ]

/ ˈæn təˌmoʊ ni /

noun Chemistry.

a brittle, lustrous, white metallic element occurring in nature free or combined, used chiefly in alloys and in compounds in medicine. Symbol: Sb; atomic number: 51; atomic weight: 121.75.

Nearby words

antimonic acid, antimonide, antimonious, antimonous, antimonsoon, antimony, antimony 124, antimony oxychloride, antimony pentasulfide, antimony pentoxide, antimony potassium tartrate

Origin of antimony

1375–1425; late Middle English antimonie < Medieval Latin antimōnium, perhaps < dialectal Arabic uthmud

Related formsan·ti·mo·ni·al, adjective, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for antimony

They consisted of wooden splints coated with sulphur and tipped with antimony, chlorate of potash, and gum.
Great Inventions and Discoveries|Willis Duff Piercy
The solution in which the antimony is precipitated need not be quite free from other metals.
A Textbook of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines.|Cornelius Beringer and John Jacob Beringer
Diaphoretics produce perspiration, such as tartrate of antimony, &c.
Mrs. Hale's Receipts for the Million|Sarah Josepha Hale
It may be resuscitated, like the calces of Antimony, into a Regulus, by re-uniting it with a phlogiston.
Elements of the Theory and Practice of Chymistry, 5th ed.|Pierre Joseph Macquer

The scoria found on the Regulus of the first fusion is a combination of Iron with the sulphureous part of the Antimony.
Elements of the Theory and Practice of Chymistry, 5th ed.|Pierre Joseph Macquer

British Dictionary definitions for antimony

antimony

/ (ˈæntɪmənɪ) /

noun

a toxic metallic element that exists in two allotropic forms and occurs principally in stibnite. The stable form is a brittle silvery-white crystalline metal that is added to alloys to increase their strength and hardness and is used in semiconductors. Symbol: Sb; atomic no: 51; atomic wt: 121.757; valency: 0, –3, +3, or +5; relative density: 6.691; melting pt: 630.76°C; boiling pt: 1587°C

Word Origin for antimony

C15: from Medieval Latin antimōnium, of uncertain origin

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

Word Origin and History for antimony

antimony

brittle metallic element, early 15c., from Old French antimoine and directly from Medieval Latin antimonium, an alchemist's term (used 11c. by Constantinus Africanus), origin obscure, probably a Latinization of Greek stimmi "powdered antimony, black antimony" (a cosmetic used to paint the eyelids), from some Arabic word (cf. al 'othmud), unless the Arabic word is from the Greek or the Latin is from Arabic; probably ultimately from Egyptian stm "powdered antimony." In French folk etymology, anti-moine "monk's bane" (from moine).

As the name of a pure element, it is attested in English from 1788. Its chemical symbol Sb is for Stibium, the Latin name for "black antimony," which word was used also in English for "black antimony."

Medicine definitions for antimony

antimony

[ ăn′tə-mō′nē ]

n. Symbol Sb

A toxic metallic element, compounds of which are used as anthelmintics, especially in the treatment of schistosomiasis. Atomic number 51.

Science definitions for antimony

antimony

[ ăn′tə-mō′nē ]

Sb

A metalloid element having many forms, the most common of which is a hard, very brittle, shiny, blue-white crystal. It is used in a wide variety of alloys, especially with lead in car batteries, and in the manufacture of flameproofing compounds. Atomic number 51; atomic weight 121.76; melting point 630.5°C (1,167°F); boiling point 1,380°C (2,516°F); specific gravity 6.691; valence 3, 5. See Periodic Table.