tellurium

[ te-loor-ee-uhm ]

nounChemistry.
  1. a rare, lustrous, brittle, crystalline, silver-white element resembling sulfur in its properties, and usually occurring in nature combined with gold, silver, or other metals of high atomic weight: used in the manufacture of alloys and as a coloring agent in glass and ceramics. Symbol: Te; atomic weight: 127.60; atomic number: 52; specific gravity: 6.24.

Origin of tellurium

1
<New Latin (1798), equivalent to Latin tellūr- (stem of tellūs) earth + -ium

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British Dictionary definitions for tellurium

tellurium

/ (tɛˈlʊərɪəm) /


noun
  1. a brittle silvery-white nonmetallic element occurring both uncombined and in combination with metals: used in alloys of lead and copper and as a semiconductor. Symbol: Te; atomic no: 52; atomic wt: 127.60; valency: 2, 4, or 6; relative density: 6.24; melting pt: 449.57±0.3°C; boiling pt: 988°C

Origin of tellurium

1
C19: New Latin, from Latin tellūs the earth, formed by analogy with uranium

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for tellurium

tellurium

[ tĕ-lurē-əm ]


Te
  1. A metalloid element that occurs as either a brittle, shiny, silvery-white crystal or a gray or brown powder. Small amounts of tellurium are used to improve the alloys of various metals. Atomic number 52; atomic weight 127.60; melting point 449.5°C; boiling point 989.8°C; specific gravity 6.24; valence 2, 4, 6. See Periodic Table.

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