polywater

American  

[pol-ee-waw-ter, -wot-er] / ˈpɒl iˌwɔ tər, -ˌwɒt ər /

noun

Chemistry.

1. a subtance mistakenly identified as a polymeric form of water, now known to be water containing ions from glass or quartz.

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Etymology

Origin of polywater

First recorded in 1965–70; poly(meric) + water

Example Sentences

The spectrum of infrared light absorbed by polywater didn’t match any of those in a database of roughly 100,000 substances.

From Slate • Nov. 8, 2013

In total, nearly 100 scientific papers on polywater were published in the year 1970 alone, based on samples generated in labs across the country and fueled by funding from the U.S.

From Slate • Nov. 8, 2013

I’d never met the man, but I was fascinated by the scant information I could find about polywater and tickled by the idea I had a family member involved with it.

From Slate • Nov. 8, 2013

After condensing water in the tubes and leaving them alone for about 18 hours, he’d return to find tiny bubbles of polywater congealing inside.

From Slate • Nov. 8, 2013

There, my great-uncle saw Ellis Lippincott, a University of Maryland chemist, give a talk on his inconclusive attempts to analyze the infrared spectrum absorbed by polywater.

From Slate • Nov. 8, 2013