radiocarbon

American  

[ray-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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

radiocarbon

The fact that none of the ship's wood remained meant techniques like radiocarbon dating - which measures a form of carbon in organic materials - could not be used to determine its age.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

These included radiocarbon dating, unusual patterns recorded in tree rings, and historical records describing ruptures that broke the ground surface.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026

Renne said the improved accuracy and precision of argon-argon dating should also make it especially useful for calibrating radiocarbon dating.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026

To investigate further, the team used radiocarbon dating to estimate the ages of turbidite deposits from that core and from others collected both north and south of Cape Mendocino.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 24, 2026

He had enough grant money to pay for seven radiocarbon dates.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

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