radiocarbon

American  

[rey-dee-oh-kahr-buhn] / ˌreɪ di oʊˈkɑr bən /

noun

Chemistry.

1. Also called carbon 14.  a radioactive isotope of carbon with mass number 14 and a half-life of about 5730 years: widely used in the dating of organic materials.

2. any radioactive isotope of carbon.

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radiocarbon British  

/ ˌreɪdɪəʊˈkɑːbən /

noun

1. a radioactive isotope of carbon, esp carbon-14 See carbon

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radiocarbon Scientific  

/ rā′dē-ō-kär′bən /

1. A radioactive isotope of carbon, especially carbon 14. Other radiocarbons include carbon 10, carbon 11, carbon 15, and carbon 16.

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Etymology

Origin of radiocarbon

First recorded in 1935–40; radio- + carbon

Example Sentences

Researchers determined the timing using radiocarbon dating and tree ring evidence from trees that died following an earthquake.

From Science Daily • May 19, 2026

To confirm this idea, the team used radiocarbon dating on this core and others collected near Cape Mendocino, where the two fault systems meet.

From Science Daily • May 2, 2026

They used radiocarbon dating to determine age and applied gas chromatography -- mass spectrometry to identify the caulking's chemical makeup.

From Science Daily • Feb. 16, 2026

Scientists' latest discovery is based on DNA analysis of the skeleton, which has been radiocarbon dated to between 129 and 311 AD.

From BBC • Dec. 17, 2025

Amazed by what Shady had found, they proposed using their funds to conduct some radiocarbon tests on samples from Caral.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann