noun
Etymology
Origin of reactant
Explanation
A reactant is a substance that changes in a chemical reaction. Vinegar and baking soda are reactants — when you mix them together, they bubble up and make really good lava for a model volcano. Reactants usually hang around the chemistry lab, but the concept isn't difficult if you think about the word react. When people react, they do something such as laugh at a joke or cry at sad news. In chemistry, reactants are part of something happening too: if two chemicals bond when mixed together, or if one dissolves, they are reactants. Any kind of chemical reaction involves reactants.
Vocabulary lists containing reactant
Chemistry - Introductory
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Chemical Reactions - Introductory
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Chemistry - High School
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
"We were able to vary the behavior and effective size of the ultrasmall pores by changing the composition and pH of the reactant solutions," reports Tomoji Kawai, senior author.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 19, 2026
This process involves destabilizing one of the aromatic rings in quinoline, using light and sometimes a catalyst, so that a reactant can 'latch' onto the ring, forming the target compound.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 19, 2024
Furthermore, the use of conventional thin-film catalysts often results in inadequate separation of hydrogen bubbles, leading to blockages in the catalyst's active sites or hindering reactant movement, ultimately diminishing process efficiency.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 22, 2024
A system at equilibrium is characterized by constant reactant and product concentrations, but the values of the reactant and product concentrations themselves need not be equal.
From Textbooks ● Feb. 14, 2019
Four hours later Loring and Mason came out of the reactant chamber carrying a small lead box.
From Danger in Deep Space by Louis Glanzman
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.
