Word of the Day ·
acetylene
/əˈsɛtəlˌin/
noun
What it means
- countablechemistryAny organic compound having one or more carbon–carbon triple bonds; an alkyne.
The acetylene gas lighting in the station offices and platforms at Kyle of Lochalsh recently has been replaced by electric lighting.
1951 April, “Notes and News: Improvements at Kyle of Lochalsh”, in Railway Magazine, number 600, page 281 - uncountablechemistryEthyne; the simplest alkyne, a hydrocarbon of formula HC≡CH. It is a colourless, odourless, extremely flammable, explosive gas, formerly used as an illuminating gas, but now used in welding and metallurgy.
- countableuncountableA lamp powered by acetylene, particularly a motor vehicle headlight.
Mrs. Winnie had kindly sent her limousine car for them, and it stood throbbing in front of the hotel-entrance, its acetylenes streaming far up the street.
1908, Upton Sinclair, The Metropolis, New York: Moffat, Yard & Company, page 69
In a sentence
The acetylene gas lighting in the station offices and platforms at Kyle of Lochalsh recently has been replaced by electric lighting.
1951 April, “Notes and News: Improvements at Kyle of Lochalsh”, in Railway Magazine, number 600, page 281
Where it comes from
- Frenchacétylène
- Englishacetylene
Borrowed from French acétylène, coined by French chemist Marcellin Berthelot, from acetyl + -ene.
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