gadolinium

[ gad-l-in-ee-uhm ]

nounChemistry.

a rare-earth metallic element. Symbol: Gd; atomic weight: 157.25; atomic number: 64.

Origin of gadolinium

First recorded in 1885–90; see origin at gadolinite, -ium

Other words from gadolinium

gad·o·lin·ic, adjective

Words Nearby gadolinium

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use gadolinium in a sentence

However, they had enough old Federation-period textbooks still in microprint to know what could be done with gadolinium.
Space Viking | Henry Beam Piper
gadolinium was essential to hyperdrive engines; the engines of a ship the size of the Nemesis required fifty pounds of it.
Space Viking | Henry Beam Piper
Her captain wanted fissionables and gadolinium; Count Lionel was building more ships.
Space Viking | Henry Beam Piper
Hey, you're not thinking of selling Amaterasu plutonium and Beowulf gadolinium, are you?
Space Viking | Henry Beam Piper

British Dictionary definitions for gadolinium

gadolinium

/ (ˌɡædəˈlɪnɪəm) /

noun

a ductile malleable silvery-white ferromagnetic element of the lanthanide series of metals: occurs principally in monazite and bastnaesite. Symbol: Gd; atomic no: 64; atomic wt: 157.25; valency: 3; relative density: 7.901; melting pt: 1313±°C; boiling pt: 3273°C (approx.)

Origin of gadolinium

C19: New Latin, from gadolinite

Derived forms of gadolinium

gadolinic, adjective

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

Scientific definitions for gadolinium

gadolinium

[ găd′l-ĭn′ē-əm ]

A silvery-white, malleable, ductile metallic element of the lanthanide series that has seven natural isotopes and 11 artificial isotopes. Two of the natural isotopes, Gd 155 and Gd 157, are the best known neutron absorbers. Gadolinium is used to improve the heat and corrosion resistance of iron, chromium, and various alloys and in medicine as a contrast medium for magnetic resonance imaging and as a radioisotope in bone mineral analysis. Atomic number 64; atomic weight 157.25; melting point 1,312°C; boiling point approximately 3,000°C; specific gravity from 7.8 to 7.896; valence 3. See Periodic Table.

Browse