boron

[ bawr-on, bohr- ]

/ ˈbɔr ɒn, ˈboʊr- /

noun Chemistry.

a nonmetallic element occurring naturally only in combination, as in borax or boric acid, and obtained in either an amorphous or a crystalline form when reduced from its compounds. Symbol: B; atomic weight: 10.811; atomic number: 5.

Nearby words

Origin of boron

1805–15; bor(ax¹) + (carb)on

Related formsbo·ron·ic

[boh-ron-ik, baw-, buh-] /boʊˈrɒn ɪk, bɔ-, bə-/, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for boron

When thrown into vapor of mercury, boron phospho-di-iodide instantly takes fire.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 841, February 13, 1892|Various
In it are dissolved varying quantities of metallic and non-metallic fluorides, such as boron trifluoride, sodium fluoride, etc.
Uller Uprising|Henry Beam Piper, John D. Clark and John F. Carr
Generally speaking annual plants and parts of plants seem to have the least boron in the composition of their ashes.
Inorganic Plant Poisons and Stimulants|Winifred E. Brenchley
Some consider it a regular metal, but it is usually called a "hyalogen" or glass former like Boron.
The White Spark|Orville Livingston Leach

Boron can be prepared from its oxide by reduction with magnesium, exactly as in the case of silicon.
An Elementary Study of Chemistry|William McPherson

British Dictionary definitions for boron

boron

/ (ˈbɔːrɒn) /

noun

a very hard almost colourless crystalline metalloid element that in impure form exists as a brown amorphous powder. It occurs principally in borax and is used in hardening steel. The naturally occurring isotope boron-10 is used in nuclear control rods and neutron detection instruments. Symbol: B; atomic no: 5; atomic wt: 10.81; valency: 3; relative density: 2.34 (crystalline), 2.37 (amorphous); melting pt: 2092°C; boiling pt: 4002°C

Word Origin for boron

C19: from bor (ax) + (carb) on

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 boron

boron

1812, from borax + ending abstracted unetymologically from carbon (it resembles carbon). Originally called boracium by Humphrey Davy because it was drawn from boracic acid. Related: Boric.

Medicine definitions for boron

boron

[ bôr′ŏn′ ]

n. Symbol B

A soft, nonmetallic element found in compounds that are used in treating cancer and as astringents and antiseptics. Atomic number 5.

Science definitions for boron

boron

[ bôr′ŏn′ ]

B

A shiny, brittle, black metalloid element extracted chiefly from borax. It is a good electrical conductor at high temperatures and a poor conductor at low temperatures. Boron is necessary for the growth of land plants and is used in the preparation of soaps, abrasives, and hard alloys. It is also used in the control rods of nuclear reactors as a neutron absorber. Atomic number 5; atomic weight 10.811; melting point 2,300°C; sublimation point 2,550°C; specific gravity (crystal) 2.34; valence 3. See Periodic Table.