cerium
Americannoun
noun
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A shiny, gray metallic element of the lanthanide series. It is ductile and malleable and is used in electronic components, alloys, and lighter flints. It is also used in glass polishing, as a catalyst in self-cleaning ovens, and in various nuclear applications. Atomic number 58; atomic weight 140.12; melting point 795°C; boiling point 3,468°C; specific gravity 6.67 to 8.23; valence 3, 4.
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See Periodic Table
Etymology
Origin of cerium
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Valor has designed reusable ligands for 10 elements, including gold, copper, platinum, nickel and a number of otherwise difficult-to-isolate rare earths, including cerium, dysprosium and yttrium.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 11, 2026
In the chemical industry, cerium is widely used in oil refining and glass polishing -- as well as in flints for cigarette lighters.
From Barron's • Feb. 4, 2026
"The objective of the liquid separation unit will be to purify cerium on one side, lanthanum on the other side," explains production manager Florian Gouneau as we walk up a flight of metal stairs.
From BBC • Aug. 6, 2025
Inside this reactor, which contains a porous ceramic structure made of cerium oxide, a thermochemical cycle takes place for splitting water and CO2 captured previously from the air.
From Science Daily • Oct. 27, 2023
The mineral monazite is the source of the thorium and cerium compounds which, glowing intensely when heated, form the light-giving material of incandescent gas mantles.
From The Economic Aspect of Geology by Leith, C. K. (Charles Kenneth)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
