phosphorescence
Americannoun
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the property of being luminous at temperatures below incandescence, as from slow oxidation in the case of phosphorus or after exposure to light or other radiation.
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a luminous appearance resulting from this.
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any luminous radiation emitted from a substance after the removal of the exciting agent.
noun
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physics
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a fluorescence that persists after the bombarding radiation producing it has stopped
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a fluorescence for which the average lifetime of the excited atoms is greater than 10 –8 seconds
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the light emitted in phosphorescence
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the emission of light during a chemical reaction, such as bioluminescence, in which insufficient heat is evolved to cause fluorescence Compare fluorescence
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of phosphorescence
First recorded in 1790–1800; phosphoresc(ent) + -ence
Explanation
Phosphorescence is when something glows with light without becoming hot to the touch, like the glow-in-the-dark stars on your bedroom ceiling. Special paint that you can see in the dark has the quality of phosphorescence, and in nature there are certain types of plankton that make moonlit water glow with phosphorescence. It's a scientific term that describes what happens when energy is emitted slowly from an object, appearing as light. It comes from the word phosphorus, a chemical element whose Latin meaning is "light-bringing."
Vocabulary lists containing phosphorescence
Novel Study: Lord of the Flies, Chapters 5–12
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Words with 15 or More Letters, List 3
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Impossible Creatures
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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.
The music stops, the lights return to the usual sickly phosphorescence, and the administrator pulls his usual demeanor back to formality as everyone recovers from their shock.
From Salon • Jan. 18, 2025
In general, phosphorescence signals are much longer-lasting than their fluorescent counterparts, allowing the Biofinder to distinguish between them.
From Scientific American • Jul. 27, 2022
Visitors come for its “blue tears,” a phosphorescence in the waters caused by algae.
From Washington Post • Oct. 15, 2021
I’m staring down, where dolphins are magically lit by phosphorescence.
From The Guardian • Nov. 4, 2018
The phosphorescence gave dim shadows — A match flared.
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
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.
