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Litmus - 8 dictionary results
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lit⋅mus

  [lit-muhs]
Use Litmus in a Sentence
–noun
a blue coloring matter obtained from certain lichens, esp. Roccella tinctoria. In alkaline solution litmus turns blue, in acid solution, red: widely used as a chemical indicator.
Origin:
1495–1505; earlier lytmos < ON litmosi dye-moss, equiv. to lit- color, dye + mosi moss
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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lit·mus   (lĭt'məs)   
n.  A water-soluble blue powder derived from certain lichens that changes to red with increasing acidity and to blue with increasing basicity.

[Middle English litemose (of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse litmosi, dyer's herbs litr, color, dye + mosi, bog, moss) and Middle English lykemose (from Middle Dutch lijkmoes, variant of lēcmoes : lēken, to drip + moes, moss).]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Litmus

Lit"mus\, n. [D. lakmoes; lak lacker + moes a thick preparation of fruit, pap, prob. akin to E. meat: cf. G. lackmus. See Lac a resinous substance.] (Chem.) A dyestuff extracted from certain lichens (Roccella tinctoria, Lecanora tartarea, etc.), as a blue amorphous mass which consists of a compound of the alkaline carbonates with certain coloring matters related to orcin and orcein.

Note: Litmus is used as a dye, and being turned red by acids and restored to its blue color by alkalies, is a common indicator or test for acidity and alkalinity.

Litmus paper (Chem.), unsized paper saturated with blue or red litmus, -- used in testing for acids or alkalies.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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litmus [(lit-muhs)]

In chemistry, a kind of paper used to tell whether a solution is an acid or a base. Acids turn blue litmus paper red; bases turn red litmus paper blue. Other testing paper or sophisticated instruments can be used to measure the pH of a solution more precisely.

Note: The term litmus is often used to refer to a general and simple test: “Your vote on this issue is a litmus test of your political philosophy.”
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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litmus 
c.1325, from M.Du. lijkmoes (Du. lakmoes), from lac (see lac) + moes "pulp." The other theory is that it represents O.N. litmose, lit. "lichen for dying," from O.N. lita "to dye, to stain," from litr "color, dye," from P.Gmc. *wlitiz (cf. O.E. wlite "brightness, beauty," O.Fris. wlite "exterior, form," Goth. *wlits "face, form") + mos "moss." Yet another idea connects the first element to M.Du. leken "to drip, leak." Whichever was the original word, it probably was influenced by the others. The dye is obtained from certain lichens. It is naturally blue but turns red in acid and is restored to blue by alkalis. Figurative use of litmus test is first attested 1957, from scientific use of litmus-treated paper as a chemical indicator. Litmus paper with this meaning is from 1803.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: lit·mus
Pronunciation: 'lit-m&s
Function: noun
: a coloring matter from lichens that turns red in acid solutions and blue in alkalinesolutions and is used as an acid-base indicator
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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litmus lit·mus (lĭt'məs)
n.
A water-soluble blue powder derived from lichens that changes to red with increasing acidity and to blue with increasing basicity.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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litmus   (lĭt'məs)  Pronunciation Key 
A colored powder, obtained from certain lichens, that changes to red in an acid solution and to blue in an alkaline solution. Litmus is a mixture of various closely related heterocyclic organic compounds. ◇ Litmus is typically added to paper to make litmus paper, which can be used to determine whether a solution is basic or acidic by dipping a strip of the paper into the solution and seeing how the paper changes color.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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