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fluorine

[floo r-een, -in, flawr-, flohr-]
noun Chemistry.
  1. the most reactive nonmetallic element, a pale-yellow, corrosive, toxic gas that occurs combined, especially in fluorite, cryolite, phosphate rock, and other minerals. Symbol: F; atomic weight: 18.9984; atomic number: 9.
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Origin of fluorine

First recorded in 1805–15; fluor(ic) + -ine1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for fluorine

Historical Examples

  • Oxygen will combine with iron or lead or sodium, but cannot be made to combine with fluorine.

    The Machinery of the Universe

    Amos Emerson Dolbear

  • Their pseudo-flesh is composed mainly of silicon and fluorine.

    Masters of Space

    Edward Elmer Smith

  • From this it will be understood that the fluorine will be evolved when the stone is fused.

  • Iodine, Fluorine, &c. had not been discovered at this period.

  • It is ready to unite with every known substance, fluorine excepted.

    Curiosities of Heat

    Lyman B. Tefft

British Dictionary definitions for fluorine

fluorine

fluorin (ˈflʊərɪn)

noun
  1. a toxic pungent pale yellow gas of the halogen group that is the most electronegative and reactive of all the elements, occurring principally in fluorspar and cryolite: used in the production of uranium, fluorocarbons, and other chemicals. Symbol: F; atomic no: 9; atomic wt: 18.9984032; valency: 1; density: 1.696 kg/m³; relative density: 1.108; freezing pt: –219.62°C; boiling pt: –188.13°C
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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 fluorine

n.

non-metallic element, 1813, coined by English chemist Sir Humphry Davy (1778-1829) from fluorspar ("calcium fluoride," modern fluorite), the late 18c. name of the mineral where it was first found; see fluor + chemical suffix -ine (2). Not isolated until 1886.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
fluorine in Medicine

fluorine

(flur′ēn′, -ĭn, flôr′-)
n. Symbol F
  1. A highly corrosive, toxic, gaseous halogen element. It is a component of many drugs, and its radioisotope is used in functional brain imaging and bone scans. Atomic number 9.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
fluorine in Science

fluorine

[flur′ēn′]
F
  1. A pale-yellow, poisonous, gaseous element of the halogen group. It is highly corrosive and is used to separate certain isotopes of uranium and to make refrigerants and high-temperature plastics. It is also added in fluoride form to the water supply to prevent tooth decay. Atomic number 9; atomic weight 18.9984; melting point -223°C; boiling point -188.14°C; specific gravity of liquid 1.108 (at boiling point); valence 1. See Periodic Table.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.