chromium

[ kroh-mee-uh m ]

/ ˈkroʊ mi əm /

noun

a lustrous, hard, brittle, metallic element used in alloy steels for hardness and corrosion resistance, as in stainless steel, and for plating other metals: chromium salts are used as pigments and mordants. Symbol: Cr; atomic weight: 51.996; atomic number: 24; specific gravity: 7.1.

chrome(def 2).

Nearby words

chromic fluoride, chromic oxide, chromidrosis, chrominance, chromite, chromium, chromium 51, chromium dioxide, chromo, chromo-, chromoblast

Origin of chromium

First recorded in 1800–10; chrome + -ium

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

Examples from the Web for chromium

Unlike metals like iron, which rusts and corrodes dramatically, chromium remains stable after oxidation and subsequent burial.
Why Did It Take So Long For Complex Life To Evolve On Earth? Blame Oxygen.|Matthew R. Francis|November 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
RockMelt is built on open-source code—the Chromium software created by Google and used for its own Chrome browser.
Inside the Secret New Internet Browser|David Kirkpatrick|November 7, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Chromium, like manganese, is very hard to reduce from its ores, owing to its great affinity for oxygen.
An Elementary Study of Chemistry|William McPherson
The lightning rods protecting the chromium, glass, and plastic home of Neal Cloud.
The Vortex Blaster|Edward Elmer Smith

Another use for the slag from the thermit process in which chromium is used has been discovered.
The Boy's Book of New Inventions|Harry E. Maule
The material employed is either composed of small, valueless rubies, or alumina coloured with the right amount of chromium.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 5|Various
Aluminum, on heating to low redness, gives a very beautiful luminosity, as do also chromium and manganese.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 832, December 12, 1891|Various

British Dictionary definitions for chromium

chromium

/ (ˈkrəʊmɪəm) /

noun

a hard grey metallic element that takes a high polish, occurring principally in chromite: used in steel alloys and electroplating to increase hardness and corrosion-resistance. Symbol: Cr; atomic no: 24; atomic wt: 51.9961; valency: 2, 3, or 6; relative density: 7.18–7.20; melting pt: 1863±20°C; boiling pt: 2672°C

Word Origin for chromium

C19: from New Latin, from French: chrome

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 chromium

chromium

metallic element, 1807, with metallic elemental suffix -ium + French chrome (Fourcroy and Haüy), from Greek chroma "color" (see chrome; also see chroma). So called for its colorful compounds. Related: Chromite.

Medicine definitions for chromium

chromium

[ krō′mē-əm ]

n. Symbol Cr

A lustrous hard metallic element, resistant to tarnish and corrosion and found primarily in chromite. It is used to harden steel alloys, in decorative platings, and as a pigment in glass. Atomic number 24.

Science definitions for chromium

chromium

[ krō′mē-əm ]

Cr

A hard, shiny, steel-gray metallic element that is rust-resistant and does not tarnish easily. It is used to plate other metals, to harden steel, and to make stainless steel and other alloys. Atomic number 24; atomic weight 51.996; melting point 1,890°C; boiling point 2,482°C; specific gravity 7.18; valence 2, 3, 6. See Periodic Table.