oxalate

American  

[ok-suh-leyt] / ˈɒk səˌleɪt /

noun

Chemistry.

1. any salt or ester of oxalic acid, occurring in plants, especially spinach, rhubarb, and certain other vegetables and nuts, and capable of forming an insoluble salt with calcium and interfering with its absorption by the body.

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oxalate British  

/ ˈɒksəˌleɪt /

noun

1. a salt or ester of oxalic acid

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oxalate Scientific  

/ ŏk′sə-lāt′ /

1. A salt or ester of oxalic acid.

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Other Word Forms

• superoxalate noun

Etymology

Origin of oxalate

First recorded in 1785–85; oxal(ic) + -ate ²

Example Sentences

Chocolate is a source of oxalate which, along with calcium, is one of the main components of kidney stones.

From Salon • Mar. 28, 2024

The results yield a surprise: "We found that part of the cadmium is stored in calcium oxalate crystals in roots and branches of the cacao plant, which was unexpected," explains Blommaert.

From Science Daily • Mar. 18, 2024

Chewing a portion of its stem can render someone temporarily but painfully speechless, as the calcium oxalate crystals in it can cause throat and mouth swelling.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 2, 2023

Novome Biotechnologies, for example, has endowed a seaweed-digesting bacterium with the ability to degrade dietary oxalate, a compound that can lead to kidney stones.

From Science Magazine • Mar. 1, 2022

It dissolves readily in water and the aqueous solution decomposes on standing; a dark-brown flocculent precipitate of azulmic acid, C4H5N5O, separating whilst ammonium oxalate, urea and hydrocyanic acid are found in the solution.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 8 "Cube" to "Daguerre, Louis" by Various