sulfur
Americannoun
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sulfurs
plural
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Chemistry. Also a nonmetallic element that exists in several forms, the ordinary one being a yellow rhombic crystalline solid, and that burns with a blue flame and a suffocating odor: used especially in making gunpowder and matches, in medicine, in vulcanizing rubber, etc. S; 32.064; 16; 2.07 at 20° C.
noun
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A pale-yellow, brittle nonmetallic element that occurs widely in nature, especially in volcanic deposits, minerals, natural gas, and petroleum. It is used to make gunpowder and fertilizer, to vulcanize rubber, and to produce sulfuric acid. Atomic number 16; atomic weight 32.066; melting point (rhombic) 112.8°C; (monoclinic) 119.0°C; boiling point 444.6°C; specific gravity (rhombic) 2.07; (monoclinic) 1.957; valence 2, 4, 6.
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See Periodic Table
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sulfur
1300–50; Middle English sulphur < Latin sulpur, sulphur, sulfur brimstone, sulfur
Vocabulary lists containing sulfur
Rocks and Minerals - Middle School and High School
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Common Chemical Elements
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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.
The material contains an unusual sulfide-to-sulfide bond that temporarily breaks when exposed to light, producing highly reactive sulfur species.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 4, 2026
When the usual disulfide reductase pathway is unavailable, this backup mechanism breaks an adjacent carbon sulfur bond within cystine.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 25, 2026
One was sulfur, which is highly concentrated in matrix.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026
Before the war, nearly half of the world’s seaborne sulfur and roughly one-third of its urea passed through the strait.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Ancient Greeks discovered the uses of various mixtures of petroleum, pitch, resins, sulfur, and quicklime as incendiary weapons, delivered by catapults, arrows, firebombs, and ships.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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