vanadium

[vuh-ney-dee-uh m]

noun Chemistry.

a rare element occurring in certain minerals and obtained as a light-gray powder with a silvery luster or as a ductile metal: used as an ingredient of steel to toughen it and increase its shock resistance. Symbol: V; atomic weight: 50.942; atomic number: 23; specific gravity: 5.96.

Origin of vanadium

< New Latin (1830) < Icelandic Vanad(ís) epithet of Freya (Vana, genitive of Vanir Vanir + dís goddess) + New Latin -ium -ium

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for vanadium

Historical Examples of vanadium

A good deal of Vanadium alloy is used, and this is made in America.
A Journey Through France in War Time
Joseph G. Butler, Jr.
It is added in the form of ferrovanadium, carrying 35 to 40 per cent of vanadium.
The Economic Aspect of Geology
C. K. Leith
Vanadium steel is used throughout the construction of the car.
The Wonder Book of Knowledge
Various
Roscoelite is a vanadium mica from a gold mine at Granite creek, California.
The Galaxy
Various
Yet if it had not been for vanadium steel we should have no Ford cars.
Creative Chemistry
Edwin E. Slosson

British Dictionary definitions for vanadium

vanadium

noun

a toxic silvery-white metallic element occurring chiefly in carnotite and vanadinite and used in steel alloys, high-speed tools, and as a catalyst. Symbol: V; atomic no: 23; atomic wt: 50.9415; valency: 2–5; relative density: 6.11; melting pt: 1910±10°C; boiling pt: 3409°C

Word Origin for vanadium

C19: New Latin, from Old Norse Vanadis, epithet of the goddess Freya + -ium

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

Word Origin and History for vanadium

rare metallic element, 1833, named 1830 by Swedish chemist Nils Gabriel Sefström (1787-1845), from Old Norse Vanadis, one of the names of the Norse beauty goddess Freyja (see Freya), perhaps because of its colorful compounds.

Medicine definitions for vanadium

vanadium

[və-nā′dē-əm]

n. Symbol V

A soft ductile metallic element, used in rust-resistant high-speed tools, as a carbon stabilizer in some steels, and as a catalyst. Atomic number 23.

Science definitions for vanadium

vanadium

[və-nā′dē-əm]

V

A soft, bright-white metallic element that occurs naturally in several minerals. It has good structural strength and is used especially to make strong varieties of steel. Atomic number 23; atomic weight 50.942; melting point 1,890°C; boiling point 3,000°C; specific gravity 6.11; valence 2, 3, 4, 5. See Periodic Table.