molybdenum

What it means

1. countableuncountableA chemical element (symbol Mo) with an atomic number of 42: a silvery metal, not found as a free element, used in steel alloys.

   At pH levels below 5, wheat yields may be low, molybdenum may become unavailable to plants, and other trace elements may be concentrated to toxic levels.

   1990, Arthur J. Conacher, “Salt of the Earth”, in Environment, volume 32, number 6, page 40

   3 more examples

   The metals at preſent amount to 21 ; only 11 of which were known before the year 1730. Their names are gold, ſilver, platinum, mercury, copper, iron, tin, lead, zinc, antimony, biſmuth, arſenic, cobalt, nickel, manganeſe, tungſten, molybdenum, uranium, tellurium, titanium, chromum.

   1803, “Of Metals”, in George Gleig, editor, Supplement to the Third Edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica, or, A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Miscellaneous Literature, 2nd edition, volume I, page 225

   Technical terms like ferrite, perlite, graphite, and hardenite were bandied to and fro, and when Paget glibly brought out such a rare exotic as ferro-molybdenum, Benson forgot that he was a master ship-builder, […]

   1928, Lawrence R. Bourne, chapter 4, in Well Tackled!

   Extensive deposits of copper and molybdenum ore, situated some 200 miles northwest of Ulan Bator between the Selenga and Orkhon Rivers, will eventually be extracted by open‐pit methods and processed at the still unfinished town of Erdenet.

   1975 January 6, Christopher S. Wren, “MONGOLIA SPURS BIG MINE PROJECT”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 08 Dec 2024, page 5

2. countableuncountableA single atom of this element.

   a quadruple bond between molybdenums

   1 more example

   Thus in M₄O₁₁, for example, ¾ of the molybdenums are octahedrally connected and ¼ are tetrahedrally coordinated and, furthermore, the formula is compatible with the existence of one Mo(IV) for every three Mo(VI), so at first glance the compound might appear to be a class I mixed valence system.

   2007, Peter Day, Molecules into Materials: Case Studies in Materials Chemistry—Mixed Valency, Magnetism and Superconductivity, page 233

In a sentence

The metals at preſent amount to 21 ; only 11 of which were known before the year 1730. Their names are gold, ſilver, platinum, mercury, copper, iron, tin, lead, zinc, antimony, biſmuth, arſenic, cobalt, nickel, manganeſe, tungſten, molybdenum, uranium, tellurium, titanium, chromum.

1803, “Of Metals”, in George Gleig, editor, Supplement to the Third Edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica, or, A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Miscellaneous Literature, 2nd edition, volume I, page 225

Where it comes from

1. Ancient Greekμόλυβδος (mólubdos)
2. Ancient Greekμολύβδαινα (molúbdaina)
3. Latinmolybdaena
4. New Latinmolybdaenum
5. Englishmolybdenum

From New Latin molybdaenum, from molybdaena (“any of various substances resembling lead”), from Ancient Greek μολύβδαινα (molúbdaina, “a plummet, piece of lead”), from μόλυβδος (mólubdos, “lead; graphite”), from an Anatolian word cognate with Lydian 𐤪𐤠𐤭𐤦𐤥𐤣𐤠 (mariwda, “dark”), from Proto-Indo-European *morkʷ-iyo-, from a root *morkʷ- (“dark”), cognate with English murk. Cf. Latin plumbum nigrum 'lead'. The suffix is + -um (“a chemical element”). Attested since the last quarter of 18th century.