phosphate
Chemistry.
(loosely) a salt or ester of phosphoric acid.
a tertiary salt of orthophosphoric acid, as sodium phosphate.
Agriculture. a fertilizing material containing compounds of phosphorus.
a carbonated drink of water and fruit syrup containing a little phosphoric acid.
Origin of phosphate
1Other words from phosphate
- sub·phos·phate, noun
Words Nearby phosphate
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use phosphate in a sentence
They discovered a biochemical phenomenon called reversible protein phosphorylation, in which a natural process adds or removes phosphates in cell proteins.
Edmond Fischer, who won Nobel Prize for discoveries about proteins in cells, dies at 101 | Matt Schudel | September 1, 2021 | Washington PostKalion’s first target is phosphates, because of their immediate commercial applications.
Building a better chemical factory—out of microbes | Leigh Buchanan | August 24, 2021 | MIT Technology ReviewGlucaric acid does the same work as phosphates without feeding those toxic blooms.
Building a better chemical factory—out of microbes | Leigh Buchanan | August 24, 2021 | MIT Technology ReviewWater treatment plants, for example, have long relied on phosphates to prevent corrosion in pipes and to bind with metals like lead and copper so they don’t leach into the water supply.
Building a better chemical factory—out of microbes | Leigh Buchanan | August 24, 2021 | MIT Technology ReviewEach strand has a backbone of sugars and phosphate molecules.
Until a year ago, phosphate mining had left gashes up to dozens of meters deep here.
The usual forms are: (a) Ammoniomagnesium phosphate crystals; (b) acid calcium phosphate crystals; and (c) amorphous phosphates.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell ToddWhen rapidly deposited, as by artificial precipitation, triple phosphate often takes feathery, star- or leaf-like forms.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell ToddThe sediment usually contains abundant amorphous phosphates and crystals of triple phosphate and ammonium urate.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell ToddAnd phosphate of lime is also taken up by water containing carbonic acid, or even common salt in solution.
Elements of Agricultural Chemistry | Thomas AndersonIn general, bones may be said to contain about half their weight of phosphate of lime, and 10 or 12 per cent of water.
Elements of Agricultural Chemistry | Thomas Anderson
British Dictionary definitions for phosphate
/ (ˈfɒsfeɪt) /
any salt or ester of any phosphoric acid, esp a salt of orthophosphoric acid
(often plural) any of several chemical fertilizers containing phosphorous compounds
Origin of phosphate
1Derived forms of phosphate
- phosphatic (fɒsˈfætɪk), adjective
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 phosphate
[ fŏs′fāt′ ]
A salt or ester of phosphoric acid, containing the group PO4. Phosphates are important in metabolism and are frequently used in fertilizers.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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