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
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Chemical Reactions - Introductory
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Chemistry - High School
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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.
"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
At ORNL,Polo-Garzon and Zhang used a technique called steady-state isotopic transient kinetic analysis to measure catalyst efficiency -- the number of times a single active site converts a reactant into a product.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 26, 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
An alternative approach to identifying the limiting reactant involves comparing the amount of product expected for the complete reaction of each reactant.
From Textbooks ● Feb. 14, 2019
"Secure the Polaris, Tom, and tell Astro to get the reactant pile from the firing chamber ready for dumping when the hot-soup wagon gets here."
From The Revolt on Venus by Glanzman, Louis
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.
