iridium

noun

irid·​i·​um i-ˈri-dē-əm How to pronounce iridium (audio)
: a rare silver-white hard brittle very heavy metallic element see Chemical Elements Table

Examples of iridium in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The mainstay electrodes used for brain mapping are disks of platinum iridium set in silicon. —Emily Mullin, WIRED, 26 Sep. 2024 The researchers also report the discovery of iridium layers in the sediments surrounding MAPCIS. —David Bressan, Forbes, 26 Sep. 2024 This impact left iridium traces around the world and triggered the unimaginable disaster that killed the dinosaurs and countless other species of animals and plants on land and in the sea. —Hans Sues, Discover Magazine, 15 Aug. 2024 In addition to ruthenium, iridium, osmium, platinum, platinum, and rhodium are rare on Earth, but common in meteorites, so a global distribution is consistent with initiating a mass extinction. —Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 15 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for iridium 

Word History

Etymology

Greek īrid-, îris "rainbow, iridescent halo around the moon, a flame, etc., iris entry 1" + New Latin -ium -ium; from the colors produced by dissolving it in hydrochloric acid

Note: The word iridium was introduced by the English chemist Smithson Tennant (1761-1815) in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 1804, Part II, p. 414: "As it is necessary to give some name to bodies which have not been known before, and most convenient to indicate by it some characteristic property, I should incline to call this metal Iridium, from the striking variety of colours which it gives, while dissolving in marine acid." See also osmium.

First Known Use

1804, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of iridium was in 1804

Dictionary Entries Near iridium

iridio-platinum

iridium

iridize

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Iridium.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/iridium. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

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Kids Definition

iridium

noun
irid·​i·​um ir-ˈid-ē-əm How to pronounce iridium (audio)
: a rare silver-white hard brittle very heavy metallic element see element

Medical Definition

iridium

noun
irid·​i·​um ir-ˈid-ē-əm How to pronounce iridium (audio)
: a silver-white hard brittle very heavy metallic element of the platinum group used especially in hardening platinum for alloys (as for surgical instruments)
—symbol Ir see Chemical Elements Table

More from Merriam-Webster on iridium

Nglish: Translation of iridium for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about iridium

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