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potassium
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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
po·tas·si·um 
[puh-tas-ee-uhm] Pronunciation Key
[puh-tas-ee-uhm] Pronunciation Key –noun Chemistry.
| a silvery-white metallic element that oxidizes rapidly in the air and whose compounds are used as fertilizer and in special hard glasses. Symbol: K; atomic weight: 39.102; atomic number: 19; specific gravity: 0.86 at 20°C. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| po·tas·si·um
(pə-tās'ē-əm) Pronunciation Key
n. Symbol K A soft, silver-white, highly or explosively reactive metallic element that occurs in nature only in compounds. It is obtained by electrolysis of its common hydroxide and found in, or converted to, a wide variety of salts used especially in fertilizers and soaps. Atomic number 19; atomic weight 39.098; melting point 63.65°C; boiling point 774°C; specific gravity 0.862; valence 1. See Table at element. [From potash (from which it was first obtained).] po·tas'sic adj. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
potassium
potassium
1807, coined by Eng. chemist Sir Humphrey Davy (1778-1829) from Mod.L. potassa, Latinized form of potash (q.v.). Davy first isolated it from potash. Symbol K is from L. kalium "potash."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| potassium | |
noun | |
| a light soft silver-white metallic element of the alkali metal group; oxidizes rapidly in air and reacts violently with water; is abundant in nature in combined forms occurring in sea water and in carnallite and kainite and sylvite |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| potassium
(pə-tās'ē-əm) Pronunciation Key
Symbol K
A soft, highly reactive, silvery-white metallic element of the alkali group occurring in nature only in compounds. It is essential for the growth of plants and is used especially in fertilizers and soaps. Atomic number 19; atomic weight 39.098; melting point 63.65°C; boiling point 774°C; specific gravity 0.862; valence 1. See Periodic Table.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
po·tas'sic adj.
potassium po·tas·si·um (pə-tās'ē-əm)
n.
Symbol K
A soft, highly or explosively reactive metallic element that occurs in nature only in compounds and is found in or converted to a wide variety of salts used especially in fertilizers and soaps. Atomic number 19; atomic weight 39.098; melting point 63.28°C; boiling point 759°C; specific gravity 0.862; valence 1. Also called kalium.
po·tas'sic adj.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Potassium
Po*tas"si*um\, n. [NL. See Potassa, Potash.] (Chem.) An Alkali element, occurring abundantly but always combined, as in the chloride, sulphate, carbonate, or silicate, in the minerals sylvite, kainite, orthoclase, muscovite, etc. Atomic weight 39.0. Symbol K (Kalium). Note: It is reduced from the carbonate as a soft white metal, lighter than water, which oxidizes with the greatest readiness, and, to be preserved, must be kept under liquid hydrocarbons, as naphtha or kerosene. Its compounds are very important, being used in glass making, soap making, in fertilizers, and in many drugs and chemicals. Potassium permanganate, the salt KMnO4, crystallizing in dark red prisms having a greenish surface color, and dissolving in water with a beautiful purple red color; -- used as an oxidizer and disinfectant. The name chameleon mineral is applied to this salt and also to potassium manganate. Potassium bitartrate. See Cream of tartar, under Cream.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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