tetravalent

American  

[te-truh-vey-luhnt, te-trav-uh-] / ˌtɛ trəˈveɪ lənt, tɛˈtræv ə- /

adjective

Chemistry.

1. having a valence of four, as Pt +4 .

2. quadrivalent.

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tetravalent British  

/ ˌtɛtrəˈveɪlənt /

adjective

1. having a valency of four

2. Also: quadrivalent.  having four valencies

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Other Word Forms

• tetravalence noun
• tetravalency noun

Etymology

Origin of tetravalent

First recorded in 1865–70; tetra- + -valent

Example Sentences

O, usually divalent, but tetravalent and possibly hexavalent in oxonium and other salts; S, Se, Te, di-, tetra- and hexa-valent; Cr, di-, tri- and hexa-valent; Mo, W, di-, tri-, tetra-, penta- and hexa-valent.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 1 "Châtelet" to "Chicago" by Various

Other organic compounds which contain tetravalent oxygen are exceedingly active chemically, and there seems to be much to commend this view of the chemical structure of the water molecule.

From The Chemistry of Plant Life by Thatcher, Roscoe Wilfred

Tin forms two series of compounds: the stannous, in which the tin is divalent, illustrated in the compounds SnO, SnS, SnCl2; the stannic, in which it is tetravalent as shown in the compounds SnO2, SnS2.

From An Elementary Study of Chemistry by McPherson, William

An alternative view, due to Green, is that the oxygen atom of the xanthone ring is tetravalent, a supposition which permits the formulation of these substances as ortho-quinonoids.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 1 "Châtelet" to "Chicago" by Various

C, Si, Ge, Zr, Th, tetravalent; Ti, tetravalent and hexavalent; Sn, Pb, divalent and tetravalent; Ce, trivalent and tetravalent.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 1 "Châtelet" to "Chicago" by Various