phosphate
Americannoun
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phosphates
plural
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Chemistry.
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(loosely) a salt or ester of phosphoric acid.
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a tertiary salt of orthophosphoric acid, as sodium phosphate.
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Agriculture. a fertilizing material containing compounds of phosphorus.
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a carbonated drink of water and fruit syrup containing a little phosphoric acid.
noun
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any salt or ester of any phosphoric acid, esp a salt of orthophosphoric acid
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(often plural) any of several chemical fertilizers containing phosphorous compounds
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of phosphate
Vocabulary lists containing phosphate
Pacific Islands - Introductory
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Pacific Islands - Middle School and High School
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Spelling Practice 2, Unit 3
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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.
See Examples For:
Fitch also raises assumptions for diammonium phosphate prices for 2026-2027, to reflect rising sulphur prices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
The researchers found that radial glia depend heavily on the pentose phosphate pathway, a metabolic process that uses glucose to make materials needed by cells that are dividing rapidly.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
The Food and Drug Administration approved revised labeling for the iron replacement medicine to warn of the risk of low levels of phosphate in the blood.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
Namibia has granted environmental clearance for an offshore phosphate mining project that paves the way for the world's first commercial seabed-dredging operation for the mineral, despite opposition from green groups and the fishing industry.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
The added depressive effect of the organic phosphate may then be enough to precipitate acute symptoms.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
"The levels of both nitrates, which we believe comes from agricultural fertilisers, and also phosphates, which tends to come more from the sewage outlets, the levels are both high, worryingly high," he said.
From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026
Other relief being sought includes dropping long-standing duties on countries that export fertilizer products to the U.S., such as Morocco, a supplier of phosphates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2026
The price of fertilizer has jumped in recent days, with the Middle East conflict choking off big chunks of the world’s supply of ammonia, urea, sulfur and phosphates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026
The territory is rich in phosphates and home to lucrative fishing grounds.
From Barron's ● Nov. 18, 2025
Echoes of this sort of thing are to be found, as we have seen, widely scattered throughout medical literature, sometimes involving the chlorinated hydrocarbons, sometimes the organic phosphates.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
