phosphine
Americannoun
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a colorless, poisonous, ill-smelling, flammable gas, PH 3 .
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any of certain organic derivatives of this compound.
noun
Etymology
Origin of phosphine
Explanation
Phosphine is a poisonous gas that has a strong, distinctively fishy smell. Exterminators sometimes use phosphine to kill pests or keep them from infesting shipments of grains. Phosphine is an effective way to kill bedbugs, rats, and other pests, but it can also be very dangerous for humans who are exposed to the toxic substance. The chemical is mainly used in industrial extermination, often to fumigate the goods on container ships, but it's also used in the semiconductor industry and is sometimes an ingredient in flame retardants. People who work with phosphine have to be careful to avoid inhaling it.
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.
Similar to traditional palladium-based catalysis, the behavior of photoexcited palladium catalysts is highly dependent on the phosphine ligand attached to the metal.
From Science Daily • Nov. 26, 2025
"Proof has been found that this chemical product was used by the hotel," the report added, indicating that there was "solid proof" that the family "died as a result of phosphine gas".
From Barron's • Nov. 25, 2025
The discovery raises a new question: why does this particular brown dwarf contain phosphine while others do not?
From Science Daily • Nov. 9, 2025
In 2020 researchers publishing in the journal Nature Astronomy revealed that the atmosphere of Venus appeared to contain trace amounts of phosphine, a gas associated with anaerobic bacteria on Earth.
From Salon • Nov. 24, 2024
The violet mauve led the way, followed by the red magenta, the blue azuline, the yellow phosphine, the green emeraldine, the orange aurine, by purple, and brown, and black.
From Field's Chromatography or Treatise on Colours and Pigments as Used by Artists by Salter, Thomas
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.
