silicone

[ sil-i-kohn ]
See synonyms for silicone on Thesaurus.com
nounChemistry.
  1. any of a number of polymers containing alternate silicon and oxygen atoms, as (–Si–O–Si–O–)n, whose properties are determined by the organic groups attached to the silicon atoms, and that are fluid, resinous, rubbery, extremely stable in high temperatures, and water-repellent: used as adhesives, lubricants, and hydraulic oils and in electrical insulation, cosmetics, etc.

Origin of silicone

1
First recorded in 1905–10; silic(on) + -one

Words that may be confused with silicone

Words Nearby silicone

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use silicone in a sentence

  • There is no sharp dividing line between the quartz armor and the silicone tissue.

    Uller Uprising | Henry Beam Piper, John D. Clark and John F. Carr
  • In operation, a very special silicone oil would be pumped into the bearings under high pressure.

    Space Platform | Murray Leinster
  • There's a silicone gum between the thin double layers, to seal possible meteor punctures.

    The Planet Strappers | Raymond Zinke Gallun
  • Fewer, still, found puncturable areas and struck through silicone rubber and fine steelwire cloth into flesh.

    The Planet Strappers | Raymond Zinke Gallun
  • In one week there were ten acres of desert covered with silicone-wool-felt in great strips.

    Sand Doom | William Fitzgerald Jenkins

British Dictionary definitions for silicone

silicone

/ (ˈsɪlɪˌkəʊn) /


noun
  1. chem : See also siloxane

    • any of a large class of polymeric synthetic materials that usually have resistance to temperature, water, and chemicals, and good insulating and lubricating properties, making them suitable for wide use as oils, water-repellents, resins, etc. Chemically they have alternate silicon and oxygen atoms with the silicon atoms bound to organic groups

    • (as modifier): silicone rubber

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 silicone

silicone

[ sĭlĭ-kōn′ ]


  1. Any of a class of chemical compounds consisting of long chains of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms, with two organic radicals, typically a methyl (CH3) and a phenyl (C6H5) group, attached to each silicon atom. Silicones are very stable and resist the effects of water, heat, and oxidizing agents. They are used to make adhesives, lubricants and synthetic rubber.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.