fulminic acid

American

noun

an unstable acid, CNOH, isomeric with cyanic acid, and known only in the form of its salts.

fulminic acid British

/ fʊl-, fʌlˈmɪnɪk /

noun

an unstable volatile acid known only in solution and in the form of its salts and esters. Formula: HONC Compare cyanic acid

"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

Etymology

Origin of fulminic acid

First recorded in 1815–25

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.

The principal compound of fulminic acid is the mercury salt commonly known as fulminating mercury.

From Nitro-Explosives: A Practical Treatise by Sanford, P. Gerald (Percy Gerald)

There is some doubt as to the molecular formula of fulminic acid.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3 "Frost" to "Fyzabad" by Various

Ful′mine.—n. a compound of fulminic acid with mercury, &c.—adj.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various

The constitution of fulminic acid has been investigated by many experimenters, but apparently without definitive results.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3 "Frost" to "Fyzabad" by Various

Armstrong, F.R.S., would prefer to write the formula of fulminic acid ON.C.OH.

From Nitro-Explosives: A Practical Treatise by Sanford, P. Gerald (Percy Gerald)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023